The Scholarly Link Specification Framework, S-Link-S

The system is based on a set of open specifications based on XML called S-Link-S, short for Scholarly Link Specification Framework.

The Scholarly Link Specification (S-Link-S) Framework is designed to facilitate inter-publisher reference linking. Until now, a publisher wanting to link references from another publisher had to first work out a linking agreement, then work out a method to interchange linking data, and finally have programmers implement the links. S-Link-S streamlines this process by providing a well-defined syntax and vocabulary for the exchange of the necessary information. A publisher can then implement reference linking for a large number of publishers using a single software module.

Here's How S-Link-S Works

• S-Link-S is based on open specifications which use internet standard XML and RDF syntax.
  
  
• S-Link-S uses a database of journals. For any journal available on the internet, the database stores information about how to construct links.
  
  
• S-Link-S builds URL's, the addresses of the internet, using fill-in-the-blank templates.
  
  
• S-Link-S includes more complicated transformation functions to accommodate almost any journal website.
  
  
• S-Link-S includes linking metadata, so that publishers can filter the types of links they want to include, and so that readers can know what sort of information they'll get if they follow a link.
  
  
• S-Link-S supports PubMed and DOI linking.
  
  
• S-Link-S supports digital signing of links for enhanced verification and security.
  
  

Specifications

Here's where to find the documentation on S-Link-S.

• Technical Description of the Scholarly Link Specification (S-Link-S) Framework
• Document Type Definition (DTD) for S-Link-S Templates Source, HTML
• Resource Description Framework (RDF) for S-Link-S metadata Source, HTML
• A technical paper on S-Link-S (24K, PDF Format)