[topicmapmail] PSIs - alternatives

[Alexander Johannesen]

Hiya,

On 6/20/06, Patrick Durusau <patrick at durusau.net> wrote:
> Reinventing the notion of a universal name
> set that everyone will use, with or without repositories, is simply a
> non-starter. Even if it is prefaced with the "sacred" prefix http://.

The library world has three very different mammoth naming conventions,
and neither of them work except on a rather high level, as with
anything else. The only reason people jump on the URL wagon is that it
has been a successful resolver on the web, and they confuse the web
with something solid; doing KR needs things to be a bit more solid
than that, or else it will turn into the SemWeb. :)

> Rather than chasing the chimera of a universal language or naming
> convention, why not simply embrace the fact that for all sorts of
> reasons, some good, some less so, depending on where you stand, people
> want to identify their subjects differently?

I agree; I'm not sure that even if we *could* do the centralised
repository thing, we *should*.

> PSI's have a vital role to play even in a diversity senario because they
> are a public notice that here is how I identify subject X. So if you use
> some other identifier and merge it with mine, then you can find that
> subject in either your materials or mine.

I guess the thing is how to merge PSI's together. The mechanism is
there, but it still needs human intervention to do so, and that's the
trick.

> Hope you are having a great day!

It's quite excelent, actually; better than in a long time ... even
here in Canberra. Hope yours is equally good!


Alex
-- 
"Ultimately, all things are known because you want to believe you know."
                                                         - Frank Herbert
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