What are Topic Maps?

How can I use Topic Maps?

What is the difference between Topic Maps and XML?

Why are Topics Maps such an important development?

What kind of data can we map?

How can I create a topic map?

Can I use Topic Maps on the Web?

Where can I find more information about Topic Maps?

Are Topic Map tools available today?

How can I experiment with Topic Maps?

Question: What are Topic Maps?

Answer: Topic Maps provide for the specification of a standard, interchangeable hypertext navigation layer above diverse electronic information sources. Topic Maps enable us to create virtual information maps for the Web, Intranets, or even print materials.

In a technical sense, Topic Maps describe what an information set is about, by formally declaring topics, and by linking the relevant parts of the information set to the appropriate topics. Since they can be in separate documents, and since they can work without changing the source information set, Topic Maps are superimposed views applied from "above" the information set. A topic map expresses someone's opinion about what the topics are, and which parts of an information set are relevant to which topics. There is no limit to the number of topic maps that can be created above the same information set.

Topic Maps are specified by ISO/IEC 13250.

Question: How can I use Topic Maps?

Answer: Topic Maps provide a virtual organization and navigation layer above diverse electronic information sources. With Topic Maps we can synthesize information into a meaningful knowledge base. For that reason, Topic Maps are a knowledge management technology. We can use Topic Maps help organize and retrieve online information in a meaningful way. They play the same role as indexes play in books, and that thesauri play in editorial consistency management and can be used to capture the information traditionally stored in databases. Topic Maps aim to dramatically enhance the efficiency with which we can find the information we need. Topic maps can support (i.e., can be formatted as) a wide variety of finding aids, including indexes and glossaries, both printed and online/interactive. The information sets for which topic maps can be finding aids can be large or small, including both technical manuals and enterprise-wide (or even civilization-wide) databases of documents.

Question: What is the difference between Topic Maps and XML?

Answer: The patterns specified by Topic Maps are documents tagged in SGML or XML. An information set that is provided with a topic map can be expressed in any notation, including but not limited to XML and SGML. Topic Maps can be built above many different digital information formats including XML.

While XML tags are directly inserted inside the information source, a topic map is a hyperlinking layer built above electronic information sources. XML information sources are by their nature, static and cannot be dynamically updated when the topic network is required to change. Topic maps work in a layer above the data source and can add flexibility to knowledge management. Information sets do not have to change in any way as numerous topic maps are applied to them to create new knowledge bases.

Question: Why are Topics Maps such an important development?

Answer: There are many reasons for regarding Topic Maps as an important development. Here, we just mention some of the most economically significant ones.

• Topic Maps fulfill a universal need to associate information to form the information networks that make up a knowledge base.
• Topic Maps are both powerful and simple.
• Topic Maps lead the XML paradigm forward, opening the way for a "Global Positioning System for the Web",

According to Charles F. Goldfarb (father of SGML). �They [topic maps] enable multiple alternative models of knowledge domains to coexist, and to work together, in a way that has not been available before. Topic Maps are capable of supporting and revealing immensely complex interrelationships within and among the concepts related to various fields of endeavor, and to provide master indexes to arbitrarily large and comprehensive bodies of information. The Topic Maps international standard (ISO/IEC 13250) provides a way for information management system vendors to allow their finding aids to interoperate, and this breaks down barriers to information access between customers of different vendors. Topic Maps also heralds the day when there will be more and more comprehensive indexes of human knowledge, and when such indexes will be easier and easier to use, because they will be able to suppress irrelevant information more efficiently than ever before, and with a minimum of effort on the part of the user.�

Question: How can I create a Topic Map?

Answer: Creating a topic map amounts to create an ontology. Indexes, catalogs, thesauri, classification schemas, site maps, are examples of topic maps. Expressing them as formal topic maps can be a purely automatic process. Since topic maps can be merged, it is also possible for a user to merge their own maps with the maps provided by other sources to enable them to connect their information with other relevant information.

Interchangeable topic maps are XML documents, in practice they are almost impossible to create by hand. Several products exist that address the requirement to author, edit, and maintain topic maps.

Question: What kind of data can we map?

Answer: Topic Maps can be created above diverse electronic information sources. This means that we can create a topic map above HTML, XML, SGML, MSWord and other word processing formats, PDF, email and various databases. A topic map can also be created above proprietary markup. This provides us with a way to include legacy data with newer data formats as we synthesize a navigable knowledge base.

Question: Can I use Topic Maps on the Web?

Answer: The ISO/IEC 13250 Topic Map standard specifies an SGML representation for the creation and interchange of a topic map, as well as an XML representation optimized for use on the Web.

Question: Where can I find more about Topic Maps?

Answer: You can begin to learn about Topic Maps by reading the standard. For more information, go to the Topic Maps standard page on this web site: http://www.infoloom.com/tmstands.htm.

Presentations on Topic Maps are regularly given in the XML conferences organized by IDEAlliance. For more information, see www.idealliance.org.

Question:Are Topic Map tools available today?

Answer: There are various kinds of tools available: open source software, tools used by consultants, and commercial tools.

See Robin Cover page for details on the products.

Question: How can I experiment with Topic Maps?

Answer: Experimenting by creating topic maps over your own data is one of the best ways to learn how the power of topic maps can be applied to your own business. For more information, contact Michel Biezunski (mb@infoloom.com).