Representation of Web Application Patterns in OWL

Abstract

Patterns are distilled forms of knowledge from past experience and expertise in solving recurring problems in a domain. The Semantic Web provides an environment where the knowledge inherent in patterns can be adequately represented to be broadly accessible and be reasoned with. This chapter describes the process of creating OWAP, an ontology in the language OWL for Web Application Patterns. The problems faced in each phase and steps taken to resolve them are given. The significance and limitations of tools during OWAP design, implementation, and testing are outlined. The lessons learned in engineering OWAP are cast as an aggregated list of guidelines. Finally, some directions for future enhancements of OWAP are pointed out.