NetworkedPlanet

Semantic Linking

The TMCore SharePoint Module product provides an integration between NetworkedPlanet's TMCore Information Server and Microsoft SharePoint (WSS v3.0 and MOSS 2007 are supported). The integration enables end-users to create semantic links between a content item and a concept or between two content items by simply editing the standard SharePoint meta-data for the content item. This enables portal content to be connected with navigable hyperlinks and allows portal content to be connected to concepts that have no direct representation in the SharePoint portal such as users, products, customers and skills.

For example, a Task in a standard SharePoint Task List can be linked to the documents required to complete the task so that a user who visits the task description needs only to click on a link to be taken to the relevant documentation.

For users, the semantic linking simply appears as additional editable metadata fields on a list item or embedded in the editorial view of a web page. From this field the user can choose from a variety of preconfigured selectors that allows the user to choose from a list or browseable tree of topics, or even to create new items to link to the current item without having to navigate away from the current page.

For site designers and developers, semantic linking is implemented by adding fields to the SharePoint item content types and configuring them with the selectors that should be allowed. Supported selection mechanisms include:

• Text search - the user can find related topics simply by searching on all or part of the topic name
• Custom search - the site designer can create customised search queries with optional user-specified parameters that present a list of selectable topics to the end user.
• Hierarchy browsing - allows the user to browse a tree of topics to find the relevant topics to add.
• Creators - allows the user to create a new item in SharePoint (even in another list or another site) and immediately link it to the current one.