JSON-LD of compact resources

[Martin P Pain <martinpain@uk.ibm.com>]

My take on this:

1. Somewhere the consumer gets the URL
for the compact resource, probably through
    following a link from
another resource.
2. It knows, through a specification
it was implemented against (i.e. a resource shape
    from that spec) that the
target of that link is "likely to be" a compact representation.
3. It requests that URI, using either
Accept: application/json or Accept: application/ld+json.

4a) IF the consumer requested application/json
then:
    4ai)IF the resource really is a compact representation then
it contains property names
        "title",
"shorttitle", etc.
    4aii)IF it is not, the
consumer ignores it and cannot display the resource preview.

4b) IF the consumer requested application/ld+json
then:
    4bi) IF the resource really is a compact representation then
it contains JSON-LD
        containing
predicates http://purl.org/dc/terms/title,
        http://open-services.net/ns/core#shortTitle,
etc
    4bii) IF it is not, the
consumer ignores it and cannot display the resource preview.


There's nothing to stop other properties
being included (i.e. user a "superset" resource shape being used)
for either case.

There could be a single representation
that fulfills both "shapes"/expectations if that representation
is JSON-LD using the context in http://tools.oasis-open.org/version-control/browse/wsvn/oslc-core/specs/resource-preview.html#h2_json-representation-format

If we said providers MUST support the
application/json route, and MAY support application/ld+json (and MAY support
application/turtle), then:
1. consumers that just wanted plain
JSON (i.e. who don't have a JSON-LD library) could always ask for it. and
2. providers that wanted RDF (who have
a JSON-LD library) could ask for "Accept: application/ld+json, application/json;q=0.9",
then if they get back "Content-Type application/json" they can
apply the @context that's in the spec, if they get back "Content-Type:
appliation/ld+json" it's already there, and then in either case they
can use their JSON-LD library to parse it.

Martin Pain
Software Developer - Green Hat
Rational Test Virtualization Server, Rational Test Control Panel
Open Services for Lifecycle Collaboration - Automation WG joint chair

E-mail: martinpain@uk.ibm.com Find me on:  and within IBM on:

IBM United Kingdom Limited
Registered in England and Wales with number 741598
Registered office: PO Box 41, North Harbour, Portsmouth, Hants. PO6 3AU
Unless stated otherwise above:
IBM United Kingdom Limited - Registered in England and Wales with number
741598. 
Registered office: PO Box 41, North Harbour, Portsmouth, Hampshire PO6
3AU