RAMON Re-engineering An Update Item 8.1 of agenda Standards Working Group Meeting July 2018 - Luxembourg Danny DELCAMBRE Eurostat, Unit B.5 Data and Metadata Services and Standards

Introduction Wider context What we are presently doing about RAMON Main requirements for new RAMON Next steps and timeline

Introduction HOWEVER THEREFORE RAMON is an old application officially presented for the first time in 1997 main focus was to populate the database: content matters, not the container ! HOWEVER internet is now cornerstone for everything new technologies and formats have appeared that can simplify or improve users' experience semantic web is growing more and more in importance and classifications are typically an element that can benefit from these developments as classification information is highly structured THEREFORE decision was taken to thoroughly revise this tool !

Wider context Migration from ColdFusion to Java (imposed by Directorate-General for IT) New Dissemination Chain in Eurostat LOD (Linked Open Data) pilots at Eurostat ESSnet on LOD ISA² Programme (“Improving Statistical Data and Metadata Discoverability and Analysis”) Linked-open data oriented project One Work Package deals with "Metadata Strategy and Architecture" : intention is to integrate RAMON in the new strategy and architecture to the largest extent possible

What has been done so far Collection of user requirements Call for feedback at last year Standards W.G. meeting Post published on the home page of RAMON Post published on Eurostat's intranet Occasional feedback received via the functional mailbox of RAMON Personal notes made over time about possible improvements or corrections Drafting of an internal synthesis paper

Main requirements for new RAMON Improved presentation of classifications (e.g. grouping by classification families, classifications, classification versions) Example Now New RAMON

Main requirements for new RAMON Links to other classifications should be shown also on classification pages (and not only under the "Correspondence tables" section) Example

Main requirements for new RAMON Develop augmented search application based on the Integrated System of International Statistical Classifications (and possibly linked to the CLASS project developed by Directorate-General TAXUD - Taxations and Customs Union)

Main requirements for new RAMON Make satellite information (general information about the classification, download button) more visible

Main requirements for new RAMON Search tool to be improved (including on individual pages) Improved sorting functions (possibility to sort on all columns) New download formats: MS-Excel, XML (based on SDMX), web services, RDF, JSON Make classification categories (web) addressable, i.e. each single code of a classification will have a distinct URL (examples: http://dd.eionet.europa.eu/vocabularies?expand=true&expanded=&folderId=15 #folder-15) National classifications and metadata should be exposed in RAMON

Main requirements for new RAMON Improve performance (slow loading) Some more internal harmonization (GSIM, SDMX Information Model, all CLs in RAMON – not only the SCL) More modern web design Miscellaneous: Add territorial classifications as well as LAEA_ETRS89 classification as Census 2021 data will be disseminated with this geometry Guidelines for publishing rights of UN Classifications not available

Next steps and timeline Decouple migration to Java from other initiatives (this migration will come first) End of this year ? Also depending on the resources of external contractor Express the requests for changing RAMON into functional requirements so that IT people can estimate the price and the time necessary to re-engineer RAMON End of this year IT developments Depending on the reply from the contractor, but most probably between 6 and 12 months, i.e. end 2019 Potential interactions with other actions (ISA² project, LOD initiatives) may also have an impact on the calendar.

Questions to Member States What about having a section referring to national metadata pages ? Should we take advantage of this work to re-consider the scope of RAMON ? For instance, one country questioned the inclusion of the Australian and New Zealand standard classifications in RAMON. Could we consider a more collaborative approach ? In a context of scarce resources, can we consider sharing the burden of populating a database such as CODED (Concepts and definitions) Thank you !