Initial Rough Draft: KD Architecture

This is so rough I'm a bit embarrassed to forward it, but RQTF's
discussion will be very helpful cleaning it up for wider publication.

Proposal

Architectural Framework for
Knowledge Domain Content
Embedded in HTML Web Content Publications

Draft #1
By Janina Sajka
11 February 2019

Abstract

This proposal treats of the topmost requirements for incorporating knowledge
domain content in web publications. The thesis suggests some standard approach
is required by which any individual approaches may be incorporated, whether
they be based on markup or a SVG-type graphical representation. The intent is
to reliably support knowledge domain experts to author compelling content
while providing sufficient data for end user clients to successfully discover
and deploy any required additional rendering modules. As always in HTML, if
required supporting modules cannot be utilized by the host client browser for
any reason, it is expected that domain specific content will simply be skipped
without any rendering attempt.

Introduction

By knowledge domain we mean the concept communication strategies employed by
such disparate human knowledge disciplines as mathematics, chemistry, biology,
economics, history, linguistics, and music, to name only a few examples. We
propose that experts in such fields would benefit from assistance in conveying
knowledge in their fields of expertise on the web, whether through markup or
graphical representation. It is understood that web professionals are unlikely
to possess sufficient domain knowledge to convey their meaning effectively
through browsers and related user agent technologies. At the same time domain
experts are unlikely to be sufficiently expert in good use of web technology
strategies. We're contemplating partnerships that will help.

To that end this paper discusses the minimum expectations of any such
expression, whether a simple inline citation of the most famous equation in
all of physics, e=mc^2, or a conductor's score of Beethoven's Ninth Symphony.


This paper is not concerned with the specifics of how such knowledge is conveyed. Rather, it
treats of how such knowledge might most simply and effectively be integrated
into the web domain.

Requirements

We find two fundamental requirements for incorporating knowledge domain
content, use of identified containers (which may, in turn, contain additional
containers), and the declaration of those container definitions and handlers
in web page header metadata.

1.)	Containers

*	The specific container type is not important. Containers such as
	iframes, divs, or inline spans are all workable.
*	It is essential that each container declare its internal approach,
	e.g. SVG, or MathML, or MusicXML, etc.
*	At least some containers must support nestability, so that an SVG
	representation might be provided alongside a markup representation of
content.

2.)	Declaration

A browser user agent should not need to parse a page to discover what
additional markup or graphical content is included in that page, nor to
discover what handlers (e.g. javascript or plugin) might be available to
represent the content through the browser.

*	All knowledge domain content approaches must be declared in the header
	of each page. This should include versioning data, as well as pointers
to the canonical definition of the approach utilized.
*	The declarations should also indicate what user agent handlers are
	available for use through the browser to render the content.
*	The declarations should also include what mappings to accessibility
	API mappings are provided, what version is being utilizied, and where
the canonical definition of that aapi is to be found.


-- 

Janina Sajka

Linux Foundation Fellow
Executive Chair, Accessibility Workgroup:	http://a11y.org

The World Wide Web Consortium (W3C), Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI)
Chair, Accessible Platform Architectures	http://www.w3.org/wai/apa

Received on Tuesday, 12 February 2019 21:06:14 UTC