A main objective of the NeOn project was to create a methodology for building ontology networks that provided guidance on all the key aspects of the ontology engineering process, including collaborative ontology development, the reuse of ontological and non-ontological resources, and the evolution and maintenance of networked ontologies. The methodology developed to fulfil this purpose is called NeOn Methodology and is one of the core outcomes of the NeOn project.

As this 4-year project draws to a close, we are in the process of writing a book that will explain the NeOn Methodology Framework and cover the main processes and activities presented in the methodology. The book entitled “NeOn Methodology for Building Ontology Networks” is designed as a reference book for ontology practitioners.

There are 4 main sections, which are divided into chapters:

Section 1 contains the NeOn Methodology Framework for building ontology networks. Here we explain the set of scenarios for developing ontology networks, the glossary of processes and activities involved in the development of ontologies, the collection of ontology life cycle models, and provide a general description of the methodological guidelines.

Section 2 is devoted to the set of prescriptive methodological guidelines for key processes and activities in the ontology network development. Each methodological guideline is presented in a chapter.

Section 3 is concerned with the technological support for developing ontology networks, that is, the NeOn Toolkit. This toolkit provides several plug-ins to support specifically the various processes and activities that characterise the ontology network development.

Finally, in Section 4 we provide the reader with examples of how the NeOn Methodology has been applied in three different domains: fisheries, invoices, and nomenclature.

The Table of contents, as well as a short summary of the different book chapters, are now available on the NeOn website.

Links:

The NeOn Methodology in a Nutshell