Melody: A Platform for Linked Open Data Visualisation and Curated Storytelling

Abstract

Data visualisation and storytelling techniques help experts highlight relations between data and share complex information with a broad audience. However, existing solutions targeted to Linked Open Data visualisation have several restrictions and lack the narrative element. In this article we present MELODY, a web interface for authoring data stories based on Linked Open Data. MELODY has been designed using a novel methodology that harmonises existing Ontology Design and User Experience methodologies (eXtreme Design and Design Thinking), and provides reusable User Interface components to create and publish web-ready article-alike documents based on data retrievable from any SPARQL endpoint. We evaluate the software by comparing it with existing solutions, and we show its potential impact in projects where data dissemination is crucial.