ScholarLib: Sharing Resources and Data by Linking Scientific Information Portals with Online Social Networks

Many studies have shown an increasing use of Online Social Networks for scientific work. Social networking platforms therefore provide the strategic chance of enhancing knowledge exchanging and networking processes in science by getting into a digital dialogue with a broader community and, in particular, by making use of the viral effects of Online Social Networks. However, Online Social Networks are usually not linked with scientific databases such that larger amounts of scientific content cannot easily be transferred to and shared via Online Social Networks. The major goal of ScholarLib therefore is to provide a framework for close coupling of Online Social Networks with scientific information portals. The goal is to make search functionality of portals available at Online Social Networks and, the other way around, to enrich scientific portals by social information provided by Online Social Networks. The paper presents a first prototype that links existing social networking platforms (e.g. Xing, iversity) to the German Social Science information portal sowiport, allowing the users in Online Social Networks to search, share and annotate publications provided by sowiport