Re: [xml-dev] A Systematic Approach to using Simple XML Vocabularies to Implement Large (Complex) Systems

Le 17 déc. 2004, à 12:31, Danny Ayers a écrit :
> On Fri, 17 Dec 2004 11:11:29 +0100, Danny Ayers 
> <danny.ayers@gmail.com> wrote:
>>> We're certainly aware of a very close coupling from what we have to
>>> and from RDF.  However, RDF isn't exactly something you can explain 
>>> to
>>> a business analyst in 10 minutes and expect them to understand.
> I don't know if it's the semantics or what, but for some reason RDF
> just comes across as too geeky for the business side of the house.

10 minutes might be more than enough to explain RDF to a business 
analyst.  There might be a lot of possible approach, but you have to 
climb down from your chair or accept to do it. :)))

As an exercise to all people here on the list, try to find the 
strategies, you have used to explain RDF to your siblings, children, 
parents, SO, etc. and share your experience here.

To explain RDF Graphs, I have often used this metaphor:

	"Most of you are able to draw circles and arrows. If you say yes to 
this
	extremely difficult question, it means that you know how to draw graphs
	and then how to draw RDF graphs. I would not be surprised that you have
	done RDF graphs for a long time, and you have started at your first 
years
	of school. As a child you have learned to associate objects or family 
of
	objects by drawing arrows and circles.
	An image of a chicken, an image of a farm and you drew an arrow with a
	color which says this chicken is an animal of the farm. This is it you
	have done RDF, even before to know how to write. You have establish a
	labeled relationship between two things: chicken and farm. You 
expressed
	the meaning which links things.

	You have learned to create and to organize the world around you.
	Making your business RDF Friendly starts by taking a piece of paper and
	to draw to figure out how your business is organized and what is the
	meaning of things, processes, actions, you do each day. It's all about
	making explicit the meaning between the daily things you are dealing
	with every day."

The rest of the explanation depends on the kind of profession and the 
person you are discussing with. If you want to convince someone else, 
you have first to learn about his/her world. There's no way you can ask 
someone to modify his/her way of doing things in their reality, because 
they know better than you. The only thing you can do is try to 
understand what they do, learn about their work, and they answer some 
of their questions, solve their problems.


-- 
Karl Dubost - http://www.w3.org/People/karl/
W3C Conformance Manager
*** Be Strict To Be Cool ***