JudaicaLink Labs

JudaicaLink Labs is the main web interface for searching, exploring, and interacting with the JudaicaLink knowledge graph. It provides an easy-to-use interface for users to query and browse structured data about Jewish history, culture, and scholarship.

Features of JudaicaLink Labs

1. Entity Search

• Users can search for persons, places, institutions, and texts.

• Results display structured RDF data enriched with external links (e.g., GND, Wikidata, DBpedia).

2. Compact Memory Full-Text Search

• Search within historical Jewish newspapers and periodicals.

• Indexed texts include metadata and direct links to Compact Memory digital archives.

3. Compact Memory Entity Extraction

• Extracted named entities (people, places, organizations) from digitized texts.

• Helps users find references to historical figures and events.

4. SPARQL Query Interface

• Advanced users can write SPARQL queries to access structured data.

• SPARQL endpoint: https://data.judaicalink.org/sparql.html.

How to Use JudaicaLink Labs

Searching for Entities

1. Visit https://labs.judaicalink.org.

2. Use the search bar to enter a term (e.g., “Moses Mendelssohn”).

3. Browse entity pages containing structured data and external references.

Running a SPARQL Query

1. Go to SPARQL Endpoint: https://data.judaicalink.org/sparql.html.

2. Enter a query, such as:

SELECT ?person ?name WHERE {
   ?person a jl:Person ;
           rdfs:label ?name .
} LIMIT 10

3. Execute the query and view results in JSON, XML, or CSV format.

Exploring Compact Memory Data

1. Select “Compact Memory Search” on the search page.

2. Enter a keyword (e.g., “Zionism”).

3. View search results with text snippets and source links.

Technical Overview

Backend

• Built using Django (Python).

• Uses SOLR for optimized search indexing.

• Relies on Apache Jena Fuseki for SPARQL query processing.

Frontend

• Developed with Bootstrap and jQuery.

• Plans to migrate to Vue.js for better interactivity.

Database & Data Sources

• RDF data stored in Apache Jena Fuseki.

• Data sources include Compact Memory, YIVO, GND, and Wikidata.

Contributing to JudaicaLink Labs

Setting Up a Development Environment

1. Clone the repository

git clone https://github.com/judaicalink/judaicalink-labs.git
cd judaicalink-labs

2. Create a virtual environment

python -m venv venv
source venv/bin/activate  # On macOS/Linux
venv\Scripts\activate  # On Windows

3. Install dependencies

pip install -r requirements.txt

4. Run the development server

python manage.py runserver

5. Open http://127.0.0.1:8000/ in your browser.

Troubleshooting & Support

• Error accessing data? Ensure the SPARQL endpoint is online.

• Search not returning results? Check if the dataset is indexed.

• Need help? Contact us at https://labs.judaicalink.org/contact/.

— JudaicaLink Labs is an evolving platform—new features and datasets are regularly added. Stay updated with the latest changes on https://www.judaicalink.org/news/.