[topicmapmail] DRAFT: Datatypes for XML Topic Maps

[Murray Altheim]

[My apologies if you receive this more than once; I'm posting
to several topic map related lists.]

I'm pleased to announce a first draft of something that's been
in the works for over a year (well, put on hold for over a year).
The ability to constrain or "type" topic characteristics is
something necessary within the topic map community. Constraints
on topic map structures may be provided by various forms of
schema facilities, such as TMCL, but a simple datatyping feature
is still something sorely missing. There are some examples
provided in the document.

  "Datatypes for XML Topic Maps (XTM): using XML Schema Datatypes"
   Murray Altheim, Knowledge Media Institute, The Open University,
   12 December 2002.

   See:

     http://kmi.open.ac.uk/psi/datatypes.html

   Abstract:

     The W3C Recommendation XML Schema Part 2: Datatypes
     [XSD] (hereafter called "XSD") provides a specification
     of datatypes and their facets, and forms the semantic
     basis of this document, which establishes Published
     Subject Indicators (PSIs) for each XML Schema datatype
     and facet. A PSI is a (relatively) stable URL used as
     a canonical identifier for a subject, particularly
     within an XML Topic Map [XTM] document, though
     application of PSIs is not limited to XTM.

I welcome comments or suggestions towards establishing "best
practices" for use of these PSIs, as well as comments on the
structures within the provided topic map. I am willing to add
visualizations of various parts of the topic map if that is
considered helpful.

Thanks for your consideration of this draft,

Murray

......................................................................
Murray Altheim                  <http://kmi.open.ac.uk/people/murray/>
Knowledge Media Institute
The Open University, Milton Keynes, Bucks, MK7 6AA, UK

            If you're the first person in a new territory,
            you're likely to get shot at.
                                                     -- ma