Draft of semantic interoperability standard is now online for public comment

*/"Interoperability with other vocabularies"/* is to be the title of 
Part 2 of the international standard *ISO 25964* */Thesauri and 
interoperability with other vocabularies/*.Part 2 will build on the 
foundation established in Part 1 /Thesauri for information retrieval/, 
which was published in 2011. (See more about Part 1 at 
http://nkos.slis.kent.edu/PressReleaseISO25964-1Dec2011.pdf). It is also 
well aligned with the mapping properties of SKOS.

*Public availability*

The draft is now available for public consultation until the end of 
April 2012, free of charge, at http://drafts.bsigroup.com/ . You can 
find it there easily by entering "25964" in the search box. Although no 
payment is required you will need to register before viewing the whole 
document, section by section.

You are invited to enter as many comments as you wish, and propose 
alternative text if appropriate. All comments submitted online will be 
forwarded to the drafting committee (ISO TC46/SC9/WG8) at the end of the 
commenting period. Comments are welcome from prospective users of all 
nationalities.

*Content of the draft*

ISO DIS 25964-2, as the draft of Part 2 is known, provides guidance for 
the context in which diverse vocabularies are used and needed to access 
multiple information systems. It deals first with structural models for 
mapping across vocabularies, such as hub structures or direct linkage. 
It goes on to set out good practice for mapping between one vocabulary 
and another, including:

·the various types of mapping recommended (e.g. equivalence, 
broader/narrower, etc.);

·how to handle pre-coordination of concepts

·techniques for identifying candidate mappings

·data management and exchange

·display of mapped vocabularies

The guidance in this standard applies not just to mapping between one 
thesaurus and another, but also to interoperability between thesauri and 
classification schemes, taxonomies, subject heading schemes, ontologies, 
terminologies, name authority lists and synonym rings. Key 
characteristics including the basic semantic components of each of these 
vocabulary types are described, and where applicable examples are given 
of mapping between these and thesauri.


*Role and applicability of the standard*

Part 1 of the standard sets out the best practice available now for 
thesaurus development and maintenance. Part 2 adds guidance for the 
networked future, and marks a step towards the Semantic Web.

The drafting committee will look forward to your feedback
Stella Dextre Clarke
Convenor, ISO TC46/SC9/WG8

-- 
*****************************************************
Stella Dextre Clarke
Information Consultant
Luke House, West Hendred, Wantage, OX12 8RR, UK
Tel: 01235-833-298
Fax: 01235-863-298
stella@lukehouse.org
*****************************************************