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Dear Steve,
Thanks very much for this overview of where things stand. From my
perspective, it has come not a moment too soon! I have to admit, I was at the point where I was thinking I'd signed up for the wrong forum. You really have put things well into perspective, though, and I appreciate that very much. Thanks, again.
Keith DeWeese
-------- Original Message --------
Subject: [ontolog-forum] Quick take on where we stand in our
discussions
From: "Steve Ray" <ray@xxxxxxxxxxxx>
Date: Tue, January 30, 2007 8:47 pm
To: "'Ontology Summit 2007 Forum'" <ontology-summit@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Cc: "'[ontolog-forum] '" <ontolog-forum@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
I would like to take this opportunity to share my perception of where
things
stand, and where we are headed, with respect to the Ontology Summit
2007. We are
clearly having a vigorous discussion - several in fact - so I feel it
is
important to clarify our objectives.
As originally stated, our principal objective is "to define and agree to
a
systematic means of categorizing the many kinds of things that are
referred to
as "an ontology." This specific goal has been addressed in a number of
mailings.
As the conversation develops, you will be able to see how it is shaping
up by
visiting the wiki page at:
http://ontolog.cim3.net/cgi-bin/wiki.pl?OntologySummit2007_FrameworksForConsider
ation
At the same time, we have been having an intense discussion surrounding
the
definition of "ontology". While this is not the main goal of the summit,
one can
see how having a solid definition, or set of definitions, could be
useful for
the primary goal. The definition discussion is being summarized
at:
http://ontolog.cim3.net/cgi-bin/wiki.pl?OntologySummit2007_DefinitionsOfOntology
This is all just getting started. Each of these branches of the
conversation are
linked to, at the bottom of the main Ontology Summit 2007 page
at:
http://ontolog.cim3.net/cgi-bin/wiki.pl?OntologySummit2007#nidSPA
The idea is that each of these summaries will be administered by a
volunteer, so
that the rest of us can visit that page without necessarily wading
through
dozens of emails per day, especially if we are mainly interested in just
one
aspect or another. We fully expect the number of branches to
increase.
I say all this in the hope that none of you feels alienated by any of
the
threads of email. Please keep checking in with the wiki pages at the
above links
if you would like less of a deluge of information and opinions.
Ultimately, once
our collective thoughts coalesce, attention will be directed toward the
joint
statemtnt (the communique), which will be taking shape at:
http://ontolog.cim3.net/cgi-bin/wiki.pl?OntologySummit2007_JointCommunique/Draft
My personal hope is that we end up with some sort of structure that is
very
simple and accessible at first encounter, such that a lay person can
easily
grasp the idea. The curious observer might then look "under the hood"
to
discover a richer structure that better captures the multiple dimensions
that
differentiate the many things claiming to be an ontology of sorts. Part
of that
richer structure might well invoke some of the definitions of ontology,
or of
formality that are under debate right now.
Finally, if you feel that your expectations are not being met, please do
let the
community know, and we will continue to try to enable a productive
experience
for us all.
- Steve Ray
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