OntoDL

About OntoDL

OntoDL is a language for defining structured vocabularies - from simple value sets up to complex ontologies. The editor for writing OntoDL programs is MS Word. OntoDL progams are executed by an interpreter that is implemented as a MS Word makro.

While OntoDL commands are embedded into any MS Word document, the specification of a vocabulary is also the documentation of the vocabulary. For making OntoDL look like "normal" MS Word texts, OntoDL commands can be linked to style sheets. The OntoDL interpreter implicitly executes the commands assigned to a style sheet whenever it discovers a line of text within a document that if formatted using this style sheet. By this you can e.g. advise the interpreter to consider headline hierarchies as hierarchies of concepts.

A First Example

This example gives an impression how a typical OntoDL code system definition looks like.

FHIR, CTS2, CTS2-LE and OntoDL

Learn how OntoDL fully builds upon standards and works together with the CTS2-LE terminology server.

Installation and Setup

OntoDL runs from within your MS Word. Make sure you have all required libraries properly installed.

OntoDL Core Concepts

OntoDL is two interpreter languages in one. Under the hood there is a powerful but simple OntoDL Object Language (OOL) that allows to define arbitrary complex ontologies using a small set of OntoDL statements. You may write OntoDL programs in this language but mostly you will instead rather write some small macros in the OntoDL Macro Language (OML). Such macros define how common means of MS Word like style sheets and heading levels map onto the OntoDL Object Language. E.g. with a one-line-macro you can define that a level-2-headline shall define a codesystem object in the OntoDL Object Language with the name and URI of the codesystem povided in the headline text.

Directives vs. Statements

Learn more about the two languages that make up OntoDL and how they are interlaced to simplify the definition of ontologies.

OntoDL Objects

Learn more about objects and properties and OntoDL features for customizing these to your demands.

OntoDL Tutorial

Defining a Terminology: From OOL to OML

This initial course shows how to define a simple terminology. Starting with plain OOL, step-by-step additional OML means are applied in order to make the terminology definition look like a ordinary MS Word document.

Lessons: Defining a Terminology, Setting Properties (Part 1), Mapping Concept Hierarchies onto Word Sections, Using Defaults (Part 1), Mapping Properties onto Style Sheets, Defining a Custom Properties

Linking Concepts: From Value Sets to Ontologies

The second course shows how concepts from external code systems (e.g. ICD-10 or SNOMED CT) can be used in OntoDL. Starting with the setup of a value set based on existing concepts this section closes with the definition of an ontology that includes manifold links among concepts from different code systems.

Lessons: Using an External Code System, OntoDL Global Objects, Defining a Value Set, Linking Concepts, Using Defaults (Part 2), Setting Properties (Part 2)

Hiding it All: From Patterns to Programing

The third course shows how you can use OntoDL features to fully hide away OntoDL behind commom MS Word elements. Starting with further text replacement directives, this section stepwise goes into programing your own macros for processing MS Word styles.

Lessons: Using Patterns (Part 1), The Power of Obligations (Part 1), Defining your own Macro, Setting Properties (Part 3), Managing States

OntoDL Language Reference

This section provides links to the full OntoDL language reference that gives full definition for all OntoDL statements, directives, types and objects.

OOL Syntax Overview

This overview shows the complete OntoDL language syntax on a single site.

OntoDL Object Language (OOL)

OntoDL Macro Language (OML)

OML Style Sheet Directives

OntoDL.StyleName

implicit assignment of a value to the property StyleName within the definiton scope of an OntoDL object

#heading

binding of the scope of a heading to an OntoDL object definition with an implict assignment of values to properties of the defined object

#obligation

trigger the execution of a set of commands and/or directives before or after text of a defined style sheet is processed

#pattern

template-based transformation of a text that is formatted with a defined style sheet

OML Tokenizer Directives

#goto ... #return

control how the OntoDL tokenizer scans through the document

#package ... #endpackage

define a named subroutine that can be linked to an obligation