Semantic Web Technologies for Enhancing Intelligent DSS Environments

The next generation Web, called the Semantic Web ( SW), is receiving much attention lately from the research and development communities globally. Many software designers, developers, and vendors have recently begun exploring the use of SW technologies within the context of developing intelligent Web-based Decision Support Systems (DSS) since they provide an attractive, application-neutral, platform-neutral, Web environment that operates on top of the existing Web without having to modify it. They are envisioned to provide machine interpretation and processing capability of the existing Web information. With these powerful potential advantages, there is a need for the DSS designers and developers to not only understand the SW technologies in terms of what they are and do, but also how and where they could be effectively used in Web-based DSS to enhance its environment. This study addresses that and characterizes a semantic DSS environment to assist the researchers and developers to investigate in more detail the SW technology applications and challenges within the context of DSS.