@article{DiazSanchez2012c,
title = {Web 2.0 Broker: A standards-based service for spatio-temporal search of crowd-sourced information},
author = { Laura Díaz-Sánchez and Carlos Granell-Canut and Joaquín Huerta-Guijarro and Michael Gould},
url = {http://hdl.handle.net/10234/64272},
doi = {10.1016/j.apgeog.2012.09.008},
issn = {0143-6228},
year = {2012},
date = {2012-11-01},
journal = {Applied Geography},
volume = {35},
number = {1-2},
pages = {448-459},
abstract = {Recent trends in information technology show that citizens are increasingly willing to share information using tools provided by Web 2.0 and crowdsourcing platforms to describe events that may have social impact. This is fuelled by the proliferation of location-aware devices such as smartphones and tablets; users are able to share information in these crowdsourcing platforms directly from the field at real time, augmenting this information with its location. Afterwards, to retrieve this information, users must deal with the different search mechanisms provided by the each Web 2.0 services. This paper explores how to improve on the interoperability of Web 2.0 services by providing a single service as a unique entry to search over several Web 2.0 services in a single step. This paper demonstrates the usefulness of the Open Geospatial Consortium's OpenSearch Geospatial and Time specification as an interface for a service that searches and retrieves information available in crowdsourcing services. We present how this information is valuable in complementing other authoritative information by providing an alternative, contemporary source. We demonstrate the intrinsic interoperability of the system showing the integration of crowd-sourced data in different scenarios.},
keywords = {crowdsourcing, EUROGEOSS, GEOCLOUD, Open Search, Standards, Web 2.0, web services},
pubstate = {published},
tppubtype = {article}
}

@article{DiazSanchez2012b,
title = {Interoperable Search Mechanisms for Web 2.0 Resources},
author = { Laura Díaz-Sánchez and Manuela Núñez-Redó and David González and José Gil-Altaba and Pau Aragó-Galindo and Edward Pultar and Joaquín Huerta-Guijarro},
url = {http://hdl.handle.net/10234/62495},
doi = {10.2902/},
issn = {1725-0463},
year = {2012},
date = {2012-01-01},
journal = {International Journal of Spatial Data Infrastructures Research},
volume = {7},
pages = {277--299},
abstract = {We are currently witnessing ordinary citizens willing to share geospatial information using friendly and easy-to use tools provided by Web 2.0 platforms. These platforms act as social networks describing events with large social impacts. Social networks are filled with volunteered information before, during, and after events that occur near human settlements and urban areas. The amount of this geolocated information is increasing due to the increase of location-aware devices that allow users in the field to share knowledge about an event's evolution and impact. In order to retrieve this information one interacts with the different search mechanisms provided by various Web 2.0 services. This paper explores how to improve the interoperability of these various Web 2.0 platforms by providing a single service as a unique entry. This paper demonstrates the utility of the Open Geospatial Consortium's Open Search Geospatial and Time specification as an interface for a service that searches, retrieves and aggregates information available in different Web 2.0 services. We present how this information is useful in complementing other official and scientific information sources by providing an alternative, contemporary source of information. We demonstrate this with a proof of concept presented in a forest fire scenario. The intrinsic interoperability of the system is reflected in the collaborations shown with different information systems such as those at the biodiversity and forestry units in the Institute of Environment and Sustainability at the Joint Research Centre.},
keywords = {Citizen Science, EUROGEOSS, Interoperability, Open Search, VGI, Web 2.0, Web Services},
pubstate = {published},
tppubtype = {article}
}