XKOS (Extended Knowledge Organization System) and How to Use it

XKOS is an RDF vocabulary (or semantic web data model) published by the DDI Alliance and dedicated to the representation of statistical classifications. XKOS is aligned on SKOS, the semantic web standard for thesauri, on the Neuchâtel Model (a data model for statistical classifications created by the official statistics community), and on the GSIM, the Generic Statistical Information Model. The presentation will relate the inception and development of XKOS and present the main features of the specification, like classification levels, correspondences between classifications, typology of explanatory notes, etc. It will also describe how XKOS fits in the classifications life-cycle. In particular, it will present: how to create XKOS data from existing classifications available in various formats (spreadsheets, text files, databases or web pages), how to publish XKOS on the web of data and link it to other classifications or concept schemes, how to manage classifications with XKOS in the Linked Data paradigm, how to use XKOS Linked Data. Some typical use cases will be detailed: the dissemination of the classifications themselves, the organization of statistical data into cubes and the representation of associations between different data cubes.