Shape Index Specification

The shape index specification repository. An online version is available at this hypermedia link. The specification is written in "pure" HTML, Javascript, and CSS, so it does not require building. The ./index.html contains all the documentation. Issues about the website or proposition of improvement can be made via the github issues.

Abstract

The open web and linked data are often seen as complementary, yet this doesn't imply that data publication should be disorganized. While the web as a whole lacks a clear structure, web segments can still be structured through hypermedia descriptions and precise specifications. This document introduces the Shape Index specification, designed to facilitate data quality control and optimize query execution in decentralized unindexed networks of linked data. The shape index leverages RDF data shapes to provide explicit constraints on data publication and provide lightweight yet powerful structural and statistical information about the content of RDF datasets in decentralized networks.