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At the bottom of an item-centered computing environment, |
At the bottom of an item-centered computing environment, |
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is the *network of items*. |
is the *network of items*. This network is a **hyperstructure**, |
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meaning that it allows an arbitrary number of data structures |
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to add information about an item through bidirectional connections. |
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For example, an address book structure may give |
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a person's name and e-mail, while a genealogy structure might |
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give their parents, children, and spouses. |
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Hyperstructure may be implemented in many ways. In this section, |
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we present zzstructure and RDF, two hyperstructures actually used |
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in systems aiming at the goals we have described above [#databases-as-hyperstructure]_. |
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.. In this section, we shall attempt to define what we mean by the word "hyperstructure", |
.. In this section, we shall attempt to define what we mean by the word "hyperstructure", |
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as used e.g. in the name of the First Hyperstructure Workshop at XXX. |
as used e.g. in the name of the First Hyperstructure Workshop at XXX. |
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about them, in this case the idea about how to develop |
about them, in this case the idea about how to develop |
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one of them. |
one of them. |
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.. [#databases-as-hyperstructure] Hyperstructure might also be |
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implemented, for example, as a relational database, |
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with individual data structures being represented as tables. |
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This would necessiate a system where users could add |
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new tables at any time, without hazzle. |
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.. [#zzstructure-rdf] RDF and zzStructure are actually closely |
.. [#zzstructure-rdf] RDF and zzStructure are actually closely |
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related: zzStructure is obtained if a RDF graph is constrained |
related: zzStructure is obtained if a RDF graph is constrained |
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by two uniqueness conditions: for all x, y, there can be |
by two uniqueness conditions: for all x, y, there can be |