On 3/7/2012 7:48 AM, Bradley Shoebottom wrote:
> Since our information is created in OASIS DITA XML, RDF and OWL
> seem to be attractive mechanisms. The difficulty is that we can
> create knowledge models suitable for publishing information,
> but the system engineers are not using this toolset. Getting
> them on-board is our missing link. (01)
Fundamental principle #1: Nobody who is traveling on a ship at sea
will voluntarily leave their boat to get on board your boat. (02)
Fundamental principle #2: Your religion may bless your method as
the more virtuous, but other people believe in other religions. (03)
Fundamental principle #3: The simplest way to make people virtuous
is to make virtue the path of least resistance. (04)
> One of questions is do we extend OWL right to the engineers, or
> let them use their current modelling tools and try to map to OWL.
>
> We do not have a complete answer, but a decade for user adoption
> phase-in is a bit disheartening. (05)
I certainly agree with the last sentence. My suggestion is to apply
the three principles above to derive an answer to your question: (06)
1. As you have noted, the engineers show little or no interest
in leaving their boat to get on yours. (07)
2. The engineers have their own religion(s), which probably do not
include your religious rites among their perceived virtues. (08)
3. Instead of trying to get them to abandon their current virtues
in order to follow your path to salvation, I suggest that you
build a clear, smooth branch from their current path to yours. (09)
Note the methods used by successful missionaries to make converts
to a new religion: don't stop them from doing what they have always
been doing. Instead, study their practices and adapt them to your
religion in a way that enhances what they are going to do anyway. (010)
Show them that they can get new benefits with a minimal amount
of additional effort. Better yet, show that they can actually
reduce the total amount of effort by adopting the revised
methods. (011)
I realize that you probably don't have enough resources to build
their methods into your tools. But you may find a few engineers
who are already sympathetic to your approach. Instead of bringing
them on board your ship, join them on *their* ship and work with
them to add the tools that make their practices work successfully
with yours. (012)
Fundamental principle #4: Instead of making people abandon their
religion in favor of yours, help them adapt their religion to yours. (013)
John (014)
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