Dan Connolly announced that the W3C Web Ontology (WebOnt) WG is open in a message to the rdf-logic mailing list.

This working group is part of the Semantic Web Activity as described in the Semantic Web Activity Statement . The focus of the activity will be:

on the development of a language to extend the semantic reach of current XML and RDF meta-data efforts. In particular, in a recent talk on the Semantic Web, Tim Berners-Lee, Director of the W3C, outlined the necessary layers for developing applications that depend on an understanding of logical content, not just human-readable presentation. This working group will focus on building the ontological layer and the formal underpinnings thereof.

The W3C Web Ontology Working Group Charter describes the background and goals for the working group. The working group home page has more information including references to background materials. The www-webont-wg mailing list is up but not yet active.

This working group continues to flesh out the activities of the W3C in the area of the Semantic Web which include the:

• RDF Core Working Group
• RDF Interest Group
• Semantic Web advanced Development
• Proposed Education/Outreach Interest Group

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