Xesam and Nepomuk Desktop Ontologies Merge
Sebastian Trüg has announced that the Xesam vs. Nepomuk issue is settled and that they will merge into a single desktop ontology.
Both desktop ontologies had been undergoing parallel development in the past to define the metadata on a computer in a meaningful way and implement a social, semantic desktop. As Sebastian Trüg writes in his blog, "the Xesam ontology and NIE (Nepomuk Information Elements) both define classes and properties to describe desktop metadata ranging from id3 tags (artist, title, and so on) to emails and instant messaging." Trüg goes on: "All that was left to do was a merger. And that is what happened now. Sort of."
In the process, Nepomuk seems to have prevailed, supported by discussion on the freedesktop.org lists that generally advises updating the software and agrees that more and more projects are migrating to Nepomuk in that it proves to be more complete. Trüg didn't consider this a slam on Xesam. In fact, Nepomuk borrowed many ideas from Xesam and the advantages of the competitor could flow directly or through add-ons into Nepomuk.
Above all, says Trüg, care should go into unifying the NIE (Nepomuk) versions across applications. Strigi, KDEBase and Tracker already contain NIE code. To further discuss ontological issues, he established an Open Semantic Collaboration Architecture Foundation (OSCAF) platform on SourceForge.net.
Subscribe to our Linux Newsletters
Find Linux and Open Source Jobs
Subscribe to our ADMIN Newsletters
Support Our Work
Linux Magazine content is made possible with support from readers like you. Please consider contributing when you’ve found an article to be beneficial.

News
-
AUR Repository Still Under DDoS Attack
Arch User Repository continues to be under a DDoS attack that has been going on for two weeks.
-
RingReaper Malware Poses Danger to Linux Systems
A new kind of malware exploits modern Linux kernels for I/O operations.
-
Happy Birthday, Linux
On August 25, Linux officially turns 34.
-
VirtualBox 7.2 Has Arrived
With early support for Linux kernel 6.17 and other new additions, VirtualBox 7.2 is a must-update for users.
-
Linux Mint 22.2 Beta Available for Testing
Some interesting new additions and improvements are coming to Linux Mint. Check out the Linux Mint 22.2 Beta to give it a test run.
-
Debian 13.0 Officially Released
After two years of development, the latest iteration of Debian is now available with plenty of under-the-hood improvements.
-
Upcoming Changes for MXLinux
MXLinux 25 has plenty in store to please all types of users.
-
A New Linux AI Assistant in Town
Newelle, a Linux AI assistant, works with different LLMs and includes document parsing and profiles.
-
Linux Kernel 6.16 Released with Minor Fixes
The latest Linux kernel doesn't really include any big-ticket features, just a lot of lines of code.
-
EU Sovereign Tech Fund Gains Traction
OpenForum Europe recently released a report regarding a sovereign tech fund with backing from several significant entities.