Many authors and readers of content on this blog are deeply concerned about issues of ineroperability, data integration (and similar terms) as applied to humanities computing. Greg Crane’s recent response to the draft statement of the joint APA/AIA task force on Electronic Publication puts this issue center-stage. Under the leadership of Neel Smith and Chris Blackwell, the Technical Working Group of the Center for Hellenic Studies is pushing forward efforts to identify and develop (when necessary) mechanisms for data interchange and actionable digital citation. My own work, with many collaborators, on EpiDoc and Pleiades places a high value on interoperability. I could go on with more examples …
In light of all this concern, it’s worth noting a signature drive that has just started: The Integration Proclamation. It looks like this effort originates from the community action, advocacy and non-governmental organization community, but the basic issue is the same: too many of our systems and datasets are walled gardens; until we can share data and behaviors seamlessly, we’ll be hobbled in our attempts to do good stuff.
