There is a -just started - national (French) project about building a Scientific Digital Library Infrastructure that will not only focus on archiving publications.

I am involved in some of the working groups and LOD is being considered as a relevant technology.

I would have liked to go beyond geographical barriers as I think that thematic networks and infrastructures are more relevant than countries. Then it is more a funding issue...

CIARD RING as well as this forum is really interesting to identify tools, infrastructures. It gives the opportunity for partnerships.

I like very much the concept of people - communication - technology. In my case, as head of the open access network in my organisation INRA, I can act toward people and make everything possible to communicate.

The Information System Division in the curl

But even if I am aware of what LOD can bring to data dissemination, I have to work with the Information System Division in all institutional projects. They have different purposes.  They choose the technology : SQL database at first, then XML ones. They don't want to investigate in RDF. A group of information managers inside INRA are working on semantic projects to demonstrate the ability to use this technology and to achieve scientific goals. It is the only way to convince the IS division to go further with RDF and LOD...

Question of skill

It is not easy in France to find computer scientist - RDF skilled - to work with. Most of them have never heard about OAI-PMH. OAI is much easier than RDF to learn. Even companies that provide computer services are not yet ready with RDF development. I would be interested in knowing the situation in other countries as well as potential subcontractors !

Diane

For the last decades, we have set up centralized systems based on open access publications. As Johannes said, the technology is available now to be able to share data from a cloud organised-systems. What is now expected is to share datasets, raw data. We are now dealing with e-science and not only with publications in an OAI-PMH repository.

As I said above, we have to deal with the fear of sharing datasets. Scientists would like to receive (Johannes's dream ;-) but they don't want to share! Information managers, senior scientists, managers have to advocate with this cultural barrier. The issue of assessment and competition have to be addressed internationally.

If the technology to share is available, storage capacity and maintenance problems may occur. That makes the cloud more relevant.

To end this contribution, I would like to talk about what have to be shared. Not only datasets. What seems to me being important is to add information on how these datasets were produced (including the protocol used). In the case of agriculture, PH of the soil, its composition etc. have to be mentioned with the rawdata to enable the reusability and interpretations.

Therefore,to deposit the datasets could take time for scientits if that kind of information is required. And information managers can't help -as they do for publications - as the researcher is the only one that knows about the protocol used, the PH, composition of the soil...Time consuming is often the argument of the researchers for non-deposition.

Sharing information is not a technical problem but an international cultural one (competition, time for research, assessment).

Diane Le Hénaff, INRA

Dear Simon,

You've done the first step by exposing the production in DC via an OAI module on the CMS. But it doesn't make the data being "open". It is the step of dissemination ...

I think the second step should go further with:

-> data and not only publications.

-> standardization using model & format that allow information sharing and reusability

It is not easy, especcially because current applications are based on relational databases, specific model & format. The database you presented is an example.

How ?

-> about data: we should integrate publications with projects, organisation, social network, researchers, raw data ...

See the CERIF model: http://www.eurocris.org/Uploads/Web%20pages/CERIF2008/CERIF2008_1.1_XML…

See the VOA3R project that aims at integrating social network with open access publications...: http://voa3r.eu

-> by producing data under LOD (Linked Open Data)

AIMS is working on an excellent handbook called LODE Recommendations
Report on how to produce Linked Open Data (LOD)-enabled bibliographical data

It is very strategic to be able to share and reuse....

With kind regards,

Diane Le Hénaff, INRA