Sparql Editor As An Eclipse Plugin Computer Science Essay

The semantic web is in my sentiment a revolution in the universe of the Internet. At the minute every bit far as the cyberspace is concerned, computing machines are merely used to show information to us, but the logical thinking of this information has to be done by us people. The Semantic web, which is an development of the current web, aims to give information on the web better semantics, enabling the computing machine to understand the information on the Internet.

This in bend opens new doors for us users and the whole experience of determination and interacting with information on the web which involvements us becomes a much easier and gratifying undertaking.

Sparql is a query linguistic communication for the Semantic web. The Semantic web uses ontologies for structuring information and Sparql is used to question these ontologies. Sparql questions can be written by worlds to question ontologies so that relationships among informations constructs can be identified. In the non excessively distant hereafter, Sparql can be used by intelligent agents to question information on the web and return the consequences to the user, like a type of personal helper for the web.

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Eclipse is arguably the most popular development environment used in industry today. A developer can author a scope of different package including applications for the Semantic web utilizing the Jena model. The ability to be able to develop such a wide figure of different types of package is mostly down to the ability to utilize circuit boards with occultation.

These circuit boards extend the functionality of occultation by leting the user to develop package utilizing engineerings for which the circuit board was created for. There is presently no circuit board for Sparql in occultation.

As the semantic web is going progressively of import, the demand to compose questions will go ineluctable. Therefore, there should be a Sparql circuit board for occultation as Sparql is a major semantic web engineering and occultation is a major development platform. One could inquire why Sparql questions are non written in a text editor or other application and the reply is simple, Sparql questions can go really complex really rapidly, which in bend makes it easy to bring forth errors. A Sparql editor in occultation will assist the user to make syntactically right questions which can so be used to question ontologies. Using Jena, Ontologies can already be loaded in occultation. The proposed Sparql editor and Jena 's ability to lade Ontologies can complement one another when developing semantic web applications.

Undertaking Aims

The chief purposes for this undertaking are:

Create Sparql editor as a circuit board for occultation

Editor must forestall the user from making syntactically wrong Sparql questions

The editor must let the user to compose any and all types of questions, irrespective of complexness

The editor must be able to salvage and lade the files which contain the questions

The editor itself must be easy to utilize

The editor must do the undertaking of composing Sparql questions easy

The editor itself must be attractive when composing questions i.e. sentence structure highlighting, underlining mistakes etc.

The questions must be able to put to death on an ontology

If clip allows, widening the circuit board to work with Prot & A ; eacute ; g & A ; eacute ; 4 every bit good as occultation

Undertaking Aims

The chief Aims for this undertaking are:

Specify the EBNF grammar in Xtext to be used by the editor to look into the rightness of the questions

Successfully roll up the grammar and put to death it ( Generate Xtext Artefacts successfully ) .

Edit the Xtext editor sub-project in order to custom-make its visual aspect by composing Java files

Add extra functionality to the editor by composing extra Java files e.g. keyword description, automatic indenture etc.

Use the Jena model in order to lade ontologies

Write codification necessary in Java sing the Jena model to put to death Sparql questions on ontologies

Write the codification necessary to return the consequences of these questions to the user

Deploy Xtext undertaking as a circuit board

Main Challenges

In my sentiment there are three chief challenges I must run into in order to finish this undertaking. The first 1 is to larn about EBNF in its entireness. EBNF or Extended Backus-Naur Form is a linguistic communication for making grammars. This is of import to larn as I will necessitate the EBNF of Sparql as the base of my editor. The EBNF of Sparql will be inputted into Xtext and will be used to look into the rightness of the questions that are inputted by the user.

The 2nd chief challenge of this undertaking is to larn about eclipse plug-in development in its entireness. Once the Xtext editor is functional I must larn how to custom-make the user interface and widen the base editor that is provided by Xtext so that it is much more attractive, much easier to utilize and so that it provides extra characteristics to assist the user whilst composing Sparql questions. All these extensions will be created utilizing Java.

The 3rd chief challenge is to larn about the Jena model in its entireness. This model is used with Java to lade ontologies into occultation. Once the ontologies are loaded they can be queried utilizing the Sparql questions written in the editor. Finally the consequences from these questions must be formatted and returned to the user. Besides, utilizing Jena, constructs and relationships can be added or deleted to/from ontologies. In Sparql 1.1 there is an Update capableness, so Jena 's ability to added/remove constructs and relationships will be utile for this.

Technologies to be used

One of the chief engineerings that will be used for this undertaking is Xtext. Xtext is a plug-in for occultation that allows the user to make programming linguistic communications. The linguistic communication in my instance is Sparql. Just like how an editor for Java or any other scheduling linguistic communication works, it will look into for syntactic rightness by comparing the input to the production regulations specified in the grammar. The editor can so be further customised utilizing Java to supply an IDE for Sparql.

The other chief engineering to utilize for my undertaking as mentioned above is Java. The base editor provided by Xtext, although functional, is really basic and non that attractive. Using java one can redact the editor to supply more functionality, such as an built-in characteristic to lade ontologies and execute questions over them. I will besides be required to utilize the Jena model with Java, which is a model for making applications for the semantic web, to be able to utilize ontologies in occultation and to question them.

Literature Review

hypertext transfer protocol: //www.w3.org/TR/2010/WD-sparql11-query-20100601 - This nexus provides the certification for the current version of Sparql which is version 1.1. It explains all the Sparql constructs in item every bit good as provides the EBNF grammar of Sparql 1.1.

hypertext transfer protocol: //www.cambridgesemantics.com/2008/09/sparql-by-example/ # ( 1 ) - Provides a presentation about Sparql explicating all the cardinal constructs in item.

hypertext transfer protocol: //www.garshol.priv.no/download/text/bnf.html - This nexus provides information on BNF and EBNF and how the production regulations are parsed.

hypertext transfer protocol: //www.antlr.org/wiki/display/ANTLR3/Quick+Starter+on+Parser+Grammars+-+No+Past+Experience+Required - Provides another beginning of information about EBNF.

hypertext transfer protocol: //www.eclipse.org/Xtext/documentation/ - This nexus provides entree to the Xtext certification every bit good as other tutorials, presentations and webinars and will be a valuable resource throughout my undertaking, through the early phases of specifying the grammar in Xtext to the latter phases of editor customisation.

hypertext transfer protocol: //www.opentox.org/data/documents/development/RDF % 20files/JavaOnly/query-reasoning-with-jena-and-sparql - This nexus provides an illustration as to how to utilize Sparql in Java with Jena.

hypertext transfer protocol: //exmo.inrialpes.fr/software/psparql/ - Provides information about an extension to Sparql where regular looks can be used in the predicate portion of a Sparql question. The grammar for the extensions is besides provided through this nexus.

hypertext transfer protocol: //www.w3.org/TR/sparql11-update/ - This nexus talks about the Sparql Update functionality which was introduced in Sparql 1.

hypertext transfer protocol: //www.eclipsepluginsite.com/ - This site provides a tutorial into eclipse plug-in development. This will be peculiarly utile when the clip comes for me to custom-make my editor.

hypertext transfer protocol: //jena.sourceforge.net/ - This nexus is the place page for Jena, the semantic web model. From the place page I can entree the certification every bit good as download and put in the Jena model on my machine.

hypertext transfer protocol: //www.mt-ag.com/uploads/media/Implementation_and_Integration_of_a_DSL.pdf - This nexus provides a pdf which contains a usage instance of how to utilize Xtext in Eclipse.

Time graduated tables

The Time graduated table for my undertaking is as follows ( Get downing from hebdomad 3 ) :

By the terminal of hebdomad 3: To hold defined the grammar in Xtext and have the basic Sparql editor working, besides to fix for Milestone 1

By the terminal of week4: Research plug-in customisation in more item, start customisation of the editor and to get down the Interim study

By so terminal of hebdomad 5: Continue and Complete the Interim study. Continue custom-making editor.

By so terminal of hebdomad 6: Continue Customising editor

By the terminal of hebdomad 7: Prepare for Milestone 2 and finalize editor.

By the terminal of hebdomad 8: Start Dissertation Draft and research ways to incorporate circuit board with Prot & A ; eacute ; g & A ; eacute ; 4.

By the terminal of hebdomad 9: Continue Dissertation bill of exchange and complete Prot & A ; eacute ; g & A ; eacute ; 4 integrating

By the terminal of hebdomad 10: Complete Dissertation bill of exchange and get down concluding thesis

By the terminal of hebdomad 11: Complete Final Dissertation and Prepare for Viva

By the terminal of hebdomad 12: To hold completed all facets of my thesis