The Semantics of Semantic Interoperability: A Two-Dimensional Approach for Investigating Issues of Semantic Interoperability in Digital Libraries

The networked information environment comprising digital libraries, digital collections, and digital repositories increase people’s expectations for information access. Specifically, users anticipate better search capabilities across these networked information resources and the metadata records associated with the resources. The opportunities also exist for improved information exchange or integration in and between communities and applications (Arms et al., 2002; Chen, 1999; Moen, 2001; Tennant, 2001; Zeng & Chan, 2004). To improve capability for information exchange or integration, and to improve search across these resources, it is essential to enhance interoperability of systems and data. This involves addressing not only interoperability at the syntactic and functional levels but at the semantic level (Moen, 2001). Various information services such as federated searching, harvesting metadata, and gathering are often dependent on the capability and quality of semantic interoperability across different collections, systems, domains, and communities (Arms et al., 2002). Improved semantic interoperability provides a basis for more effective information services for users. Effective semantic interoperability is required to meet users’ expectations of discovering relevant networked information resources via searches across heterogeneous as well as within homogeneous systems and collections (Chen, 1999; Tennant, 2001).