RE: Uploading the Semantic Web into Google Base?

Hi Frank,

 

There may be reasons for not giving free access, such as in cases of
sensitive data. 

 

Three examples (out of many):

-         suppliers of equipment may not wish to give everybody (so
including their competitors) access to their price lists

-         car manufacturers do not wish to publish the technical problems
with certain car types

-         plant owner/operators usually do not wish to make their stream
data (e.g. pressures, temperatures) public, because they may contain process
information that could be very useful for a competitor.

 

This can be, and will no doubt be, solved (it's going to be a booming
business for the security guys and gals).

 

Regards,

Hans

 

_______________________ 

Hans Teijgeler

ISO 15926 specialist

http://www.InfowebML.ws <http://www.infowebml.ws/> 

hans.teijgeler@quicknet.nl

phone +31-72-509 2005      

 

-----Original Message-----
From: semantic-web-request@w3.org [mailto:semantic-web-request@w3.org] On
Behalf Of Frank Manola
Sent: Monday, December 05, 2005 10:33 PM
To: Chris Bizer
Cc: semantic-web@w3.org
Subject: Re: Uploading the Semantic Web into Google Base?

 

 

 

 

Chris Bizer wrote:

> Hi Frank,

> 

> 

>>b.  No point in being critical.   Google already *had* a central Web

>>data repository.  All they're doing is adding structured data to it, and

>>doing it in a "distributed" way (by asking everyone to contribute to

>>it).  This seems a reasonable variant of the basic SW idea.  The fact

>>that it is centrally *stored* should be just a technicality, provided

>>the data is freely accessible.

> 

> 

> Yes. I think free access to the data is the central point. When I read the

> press about Google Base threatening eBay and other market places or when I

> read stuff like Tim O'Reilly's "Data is the Next Intel Inside" 

>
(http://www.oreillynet.com/pub/a/oreilly/tim/news/2005/09/30/what-is-web-20.

> html?page=3) I'm wondering if Google's business model can be to give

> everybody free access to the data? Up till now, they only provide an HTML

> interface but no API. Anybody a clue if they are going to change this?

> I doubt it and that is the problem.

 

Actually, when I said "freely accessible", I had more in mind "I can get 

to it if I want it", rather than "free" as in "no cost".  Mind you, I'd 

*like* access to be no cost (!), but there is material on the Web that I 

want enough to pay to access now (like ACM's Digital Library), and I 

don't think requiring payment for access necessarily disqualifies 

something as being "Semantic Web".  The economics will have to work 

itself out in practice just like the technical aspects will.

 

--Frank