According to Wikipedia, the Semantic Web is "is an evolving development of the World Wide Web in which the meaning (semantics) of information and services on the web is defined, making it possible for the web to understand and satisfy the requests of people and machines to use the web content.It derives from World Wide Web Consortium director Sir Tim Berners-Lee's vision of the Web as a universal medium for data, information, and knowledge exchange."

The Rennsselaer Polytechnic Institute researchers' goal, according to Li Ding, was to "make the whole thing shareable and replicable for others to reuse." Ding said that rendering data into RDF, which is used to create the Linked Data necessary to the Semantic Web, can make it easier to interpose it with other sets of data to create entirely new datasets and visualizations, Ding said. He showed a Google Map graphic that interposed RDF versions of two different data sources from the Environmental Protection Agency, originally rendered in CSV files.

The White House recently deployed the Drupal Content Management System (CMS) for the whitehouse.gov webiste. According to David Lantner, editor of the "Clear Type Press" blog, Drupal could give the White House a good start in annotating its data in a machine-readable way, since it "enables authors to add semantic metadata.to their markup using attributes that are both machine-readable and human-friendly."

At the ISWC gathering, Stephanie Corlosquet, a former researcher at the National University of Ireland's Digital Enterprise Research Institute, demonstrated a set of four interrelated new modules he helped develop for Drupal to ease the use of RDF. The modules were written to "expose the site structure in an RDF format automatically, so site administrators or users don't have to care about RDF or do anything with RDF," he said.

Mr. Corlosquet stated "Drupal has a very modular design, so we can plug [the modules] into the system very easily." He said these modules will be incorporated into the next core version of the system, Drupal 7.

References:

1. How the Semantic Web would work
   By: Joab Jackson
   Date: November 9, 2009
   Government Computer News (GCN)
2. White House shift to open-source Web system draws mostly praise
   By: Joab Jackson
   Date: October 29, 2009
   Government Computer News (GCN)
3. Resource description tool can add smarts to your Web pages
   By: Joab Jackson
   Date: October 23, 2009
   Government Computer News (GCN)
4. Symanec Web
   Wikipedia

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I wanted to create a Calvin and Hobbes smiley pack for Drupal (I'm using Drupal 6), since Calvin and Hobbes is my favorite comic. Within the /modules/smileys/packs/ directory beneath the directory where Drupal was installed, I created a Calvin directory. I put the following GIF images in that directory:

# ls
angry.gif  goofy.gif    not-again.gif  oops.gif       sour.gif   yell.gif
geez.gif   nah-nah.gif  omg.gif        pick-nose.gif  tired.gif  yuck.gif

But Drupal won't be able to use those emoticons unless you create a .pak file, e.g. Calvin.pak and place it in the same directory.

To get an idea of what should go into that file, you can take a look at the Example.pak file in the /modules/smileys/packs/Example directory. That file contains the following lines:

barf.gif=+:Barf!=+::sick: :barf:
jawdrop.gif=+:Jawdropping!=+::jawdrop:
cool.png=+:Cool=+:8) 8-) :cool:
puzzled.png=+:Puzzled=+::? :-? :puzzled:
shock.png=+:Shocked=+::O :-O :shocked:
tongue.png=+:Sticking out tongue=+::P :-P :tongue:
evil.png=+:Evil=+:}:) }:-) :evil:
lol.png=+:Laughing out loud=+::D :-D :lol:
sad.png=+:Sad=+::( :-( :sad:
wink.png=+:Eye=+:;) ;-) :wink:
smile.png=+:Smiling=+::) :-) :smile:

If I look at the files in the Example directory, I see the following files.

barf.gif          cool.png  Example.pak  puzzled.png  shock.png   wink.png
blank-blue.png    die.gif   jawdrop.gif  README.txt   smile.png
blank-yellow.png  evil.png  lol.png      sad.png      tongue.png

So I can see that there is a line in Example.pak for every graphics file, in this case .gif and .png files, in the Example directory. At the end of each line is a descriptive code in the form of :emoticon:, i.e. a colon followed by a name for the emoticon followed by another colon, e.g. :tongue:.

For the "sticking out tongue" emoticon, I see the following line:

tongue.png=+:Sticking out tongue=+::P :-P :tongue:

I could just click on the emoticon to insert it in a posting, if I had enabled the use of the "smiley select box" (see Smileys Module for Drupal for instructions on how to enable that select box). Or, by using the codes shown on the entry for tongue.png in the Example.pak file, if I edited a forum posting and typed :tongue: and then previewed or saved the posting, where I had inserted :tongue: the emoticon with a tongue sticking out would be displayed. I could also use :-P or just :P to insert the emoticon. I.e., I could use any of the codes that appear after the +:Sticking out tongue=+: part of the entry for tongue.png.

If I look at the Jawdropping entry, I see the following:

jawdrop.gif=+:Jawdropping!=+::jawdrop:

In that case, there is only one text code to insert the jawdropping smiley, i.e. :jawdrop:.

So now I think I see how to set up the entries in a Calvin.pak file. These are the entries I placed in that file:

angry.gif=+:Calvin angry=+::calvin-angry:
geez.gif=+:Calvin Geez=+::calvin-geez:
goofy.gif=+:Calvin Goofy=+::calvin-goofy:
nah-nah.gif=+:Calvin Nah-nah=+::calvin-nah-nah:
not-again.gif=+:Calvin Not-again=+::calvin-not-again:
omg.gif=+:Calvin OMG=+::calvin-omg:
oops.gif=+:Calvin Oops=+::calvin-oops:
pick-nose.gif=+:Calvin Pick-nose::calvin-pick-nose:
sour.gif=+:Calvin Sour=+::calvin-sour:
tired.gif=+:Calvin Tired=+::calvin-tired:
yell.gif=+:Calvin Yell=+::calvin-yell:
yuck.gif=+:Calvin Yuck=+::calvin-yuck:

The format I used for each entry is as follows:

name_of_image=+:description=+::text_to_produce_image:

I.e. I put the name of the image as the first part of the line. Next comes a description for it beginning with an equal sign, then a plus sign and then a colon. Next comes the descriptive text for the image, then an equal sign, followed by a plus sign and then a colon. After that I put the code that can be typed in a posting that will be translated to the image when the posting is previewed or saved. E.g. :calvin-yell: will produce , the emoticon for a yelling Calvin.

Once I have the images in place and the .pak file created, I can log into Drupal as an administrator, click on Administer, Site configuration, Smileys, and then click on Import at the top of the page. I now see Calvin listed as a smiley pack that can be installed (it won't show up until you have created the .pak file for it). I can click on Install to enable use of the smileys in that pack.

If I click on List at the top of the page, I will see the Calvin smileys.

I can see the yelling Calvin emoticon on the left. I see :calvin_yell: listed as an acronym and the description is "Calvin Yell" with the Category listed as "Calvin". If you don't see pictures with any of the emoticons, make sure you haven't misspelled the file name. If you have misspelled one of the file names, correct the misspelling; you may have to click on Import, select Uninstall for the smiley pack and then click on Install to reinstall it

Download Calvin Smiley Pack for Drupal
View Calvin Smiley Pack emoticons

References:

1. Adding Smiley Packs to Drupal
   Date: March 15, 2009
   MoonPoint Support
2. Smileys Module for Drupal
   Date: March 15, 2009
   MoonPoint Support
3. Smileys
   Drupal Modules - Search, Rate, and Review Drupal Modules

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First you need to have downloaded, installed, and enabled the smileys module. If you haven't already done so, you can use the instructions at Smileys Module for Drupal to do so.

Once you've enabled smiley support, download the smiley pack that you wish to use. In this example, I'm going to use the animatedFUN pack available from Smiley Packs ( phpBB pak packages) for Drupal.

I moved the zip file I downloaded in this case to the modules/smileys/packs directory beneath the directory where Drupal is installed on the website. I then unzipped it. This particular zip file created a __MACOSX subdirectory as well, which isn't needed, so I deleted it.

# unzip animatedFUN.zip
# rm -f --recursive __MACOSX/animatedFUN/
# rmdir __MACOSX
# ls animatedFUN/
animatedFUN.pak       give.gif         iloveyou.gif          respect.gif
attention.gif         happy.gif        Iloveyou-marquee.gif  rose.gif
cat_angry.gif         hellowoman.gif   nihao.gif             shotgun.gif
cordialgreetings.gif  hugsnkisses.gif  no.gif                threat.gif
dog_exiting.gif       iamcrying.gif    read.gif

Once the smiley pack is extracted to a modules/smileys/packs directory, you can take the following steps:

1. Click on Administer
2. Click on Site configuration.
3. Click on Smileys.
4. Click on Import, which appears near the top of the page.

   

5. Locate the Smiley Pack you wish to import and then click on Install. Under the Operations column, the status of the pack should change from "Install" to "Uninstall", indicating the pack has been successfully installed.

If you then click on Administer, Site configuration, and Smileys, you should see the new smiley pack smileys displayed.

If you decide that you don't really like the smiley pack you've installed and want to remove it, take the following steps:

1. Click on Administer
2. Click on Site configuration.
3. Click on Smileys.
4. Click on Import, which appears near the top of the page.
5. Click on Uninstall next to the smiley pack you wish to uninstall. Its status should change to "Install".

References:

1. Smileys Module for Drupal
   MoonPoint Support
2. Smiley Packs (phpBB pak packages) for Drupal
   By: Gurpartap Singh
   myzonelabs.com | jack of everything, master of none

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A filter that substitutes ASCII smileys with images. Also known as Emoticons, Smilies, Icons.

The package includes phpBB smileys pack import/export module. I'm maintaining a page for Smiley packs at: http://myzonelabs.com/node/3. Create an issue if you want to host your own pack; or you may comment with the link over there.

Since I had Drupal version 6 on the webserver where I wanted to use them, I downloaded the version 6 filter. I unzipped and untarred the contents of the file I downloaded in the /tmp directory on the system.

# gunzip smileys-6.x-1.0-alpha5.tar.gz
# tar -xvf smileys-6.x-1.0-alpha5.tar

# cp --recursive /tmp/smileys .

I then logged into Drupal as the administrator for the site, selected Administer, Site Building, then Modules. Under Core - required, I now saw Smileys. I clicked on Smileys, then enabled Smileys and Smileys Import. I then clicked on Save Configuration.

I then clicked on Administer, Site Configuration, and Smileys. I could then see 40 emoticons. I clicked on Settings at the top of the page. I enabled smileys for Nodes and Comments and on the following node types:

Blog entry
Book page
Forum topic
Page
Poll
Story

I left "expand select-box fieldset by default", "enable smileys dialog window", and "enable titles in dialog window" checked and clicked on Save Configuration.

I then went to Administer, Site configurationand Input formats. The default format ws "Filtered HTML". I clicked on Configure for it. Under the "Filters" section, I clicked on Smileys to enable the filter to replace smileys inside posts with images. I then clicked on Save configuration.

At that point someone making a posting to a forum would be able to type ;) and have the wink.png image appear in the posting in place of the ;) when the posting is previewed or saved.

But it would be nice to give users the option of viewing the available emoticons and selecting the one they want just by clicking on it. To make the list of available emoticons visible, click on Administer, select User management, then Permissions. Then in the Smileys section of the permissions webpage, check "use smiley select box" for "anonymous user" and/or "authenticated user". Click on Save Permissions to save the change.

After taking the steps above, when I then edited a forum entry that I had already posted, I was able to pick a smiley for the posting by clicking on it. I saw :) appear in the posting when I clicked on the smiley. But when I clicked on Preview, I saw the smiley image appear in the posting.

Download Smiley Module

Drupal - modules for Drupal versions 5 and 6
MoonPoint - 6.x-1.0-alpha5 (January 5, 2009)

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A comparison of Drupal and Mambo can also be found at Leading Open Source CMS: Mambo versus Drupal - A Comprehensive Comparison. That article references a more comprehensive comparison of Drupal and Mambo, Drupal VS. Mambo written for Xaneon Development, a company which developed Mambo extensions.

References:

1. The CMS Matrix
2. Leading Open Source CMS: Mambo versus Drupal - A Comprehensive Comparison
   By Angsuman Chakraborty
   September 13, 2005
   Simple Thoughts - Simple solutions for complex problems
3. Drupal VS. Mambo
   Originally written for Xaneon Development by Arto Bendiken
   Submitted: January 12, 2006
   Xaneon Development

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