Schema for the Integration of Web Applications

Abstract

Web search results form the basis for a variety of further actions by users, including requesting related information in Wikipedia, language translation, transforming an abstract into a word cloud, etc., actions which the provider of the original data is typically unaware of. SIWA (Schema for the Integration of Web Applications) was developed to describe how a user wants data fields from a web application to be used as input for other web applications. We propose a mechanism to add the appropriate links to presented data. The intent is to develop a standard for these service integration descriptions that can be shared by users and content providers. Originally developed as part of the EuropeanaConnect project but not highly publicized, SIWA has been simplified and improved in an effort to lower the implementation barrier. This article discusses the recent changes in approach with respect to SIWA, and current trends in the use of the Internet, that should increase the chance of a broad adoption of this concept of service integration, and hopefully trigger new initiatives supporting user defined service integration by means of SIWA.