The Antiquarian Librarian & the Pedantic Semantic Web Programmer: Trust, logic, knowledge and inference

Abstract

The logic and thinking for the Semantic Web environment has a philosophical base associated with rules and knowledge that draw on traditional concepts, such as 'loci' and 'indexes of place' for the location of items and information. These concepts and other characteristics that led to early library systems and were evident in print publishing, still have some links and relevance for the Semantic Web. For example, location and retrieval principles, once characterised by the 'loci' as a place for an idea, and the headings under which an argument could be found continue to inform the processes of mark-up, indexing and labelling for the Semantic Web. Web programmers and librarians share important common tools and frameworks. In particular they are guided by sets of rules and logic that are used for the generation of information and knowledge. To generate specific knowledge, in particular for online learning, for example via an online epistemic game, a web developer must carefully design how, when and if information is accessed, which can be achieved via the use of algorithms. To design algorithms for game-play requires an understanding of various types of logic and the construction of values that are assigned to objects that need to translate into meaningful tools for a community of users. The values and decisions reached in the software design process will be informed by the appropriate identification of potential objects; the construction of classes; appropriate assignment of values; choice and selection for distributed data; the construction of ordered lists; labelling and so on.