Are you a one of those few tech-enthusiasts who likes to explore new things related to Internet or communication?
Then this article absolutely fits your choice.
Keep reading the article to know about URI and its related information.
What is a URI?
A URI is a series of characters that identifies either a logical or physical resource, usually but not necessarily always connected to the internet. A URI distinguishes one resource from another.
URIs offer a standardized way of naming and accessing different types of resources independent of the underlying protocols or mechanisms that are used in their retrieval. This uniformity makes integration and interoperability between different internet technologies and applications flawless.
URI Syntax and Components
URI Syntax and Components
A URI contains five main components, although only two are required:
- Scheme: This is the protocol for accessing the resource. Examples include HTTP, FTP, mailto.
- Authority: Identifies the server or domain name where the resource is hosted and has an optional username and password for authentication.
- Path: Represents the location of a particular resource on the server or the file path of a resource.
- Query: Allows additional parameters to be given to the resource, normally used to filter or sort data.
- Fragment: Identifies a specific section or a portion of the resource, like a heading or an anchor in an HTML document.
Generic Syntax and Example of URI
Below you will find a quick glimpse of the generic syntax and example of URI.
The generic syntax for a URI:
- scheme:[//authority]path[?query][#fragment]
Example of URI:
“https://www.example.com/documents/file.pdf?id=123#section1” can be broken down as:
- Scheme: https
- Authority:example.com
- Path: /documents/file.pdf
- Query: id=123
- Fragment: #section1
What are the Advantages Offered by URIs?
What are the advantages offered by URIs?
URIs make it easier to manage resources over the Internet, and this is precisely why the standard was developed by the Internet Engineering Task Force and the World Wide Web Consortium.
Furthermore, many developers use URIs when they are testing Application Programming Interfaces. It is a utility that enables two applications to communicate with each other. One application sends a request that includes a URI to connect to the other application.
The key Selling Points of URI
- Universal compatibility: URIs understand all Internet resources and provide unique identities to everything on the web.
- Expandability: Any resources to be added in the future to the worldwide web may get new identifiers under URI system to ensure compatibility for the future.
- Mutability: URIs are subjects to change, and users can share and modify them as per requirement.
Types of URIs
Types of URIs
There are three primary types of URIs:
- Uniform Resource Locator (URL): It is the most common among all and it specifies the accessing location and means of retrieving a resource over the internet. A URL includes scheme, authority, and path.
- Uniform Resource Name (URN): A URN is intended to be a persistent unique name for a resource but doesn’t necessarily contain the location and access method for the resource. For instance, “urn:isbn:978-0-87779-636-7” is for naming a book by its ISBN number.
- Uniform Resource Citation (URC): A URC is built to identify a particular data in a resource, possibly some dataset or even code snippet.
URI Resolution and References
There are two primary methods of using URIs:
- URI resolution: It corresponds to determining which access method and what parameters should be used to access a resource identified by the URI.
- Resource references: A URI or relative reference is used to identify a resource. It can, however, be further expressed as a full URI, partial URI, or an empty string.
Relative references may also be applied to link to resources within the same domain or directory structure without having to repeat a full URI.
Can a URI be Used to Identify Physical Objects?
Can a URI be used to identify physical objects?
Yes, a URI is also used to identify physical objects, along with all other virtual resources like pages and documents over the Web. Major points concerning the usage of URIs for naming physical objects are given below.
- URIs support standard methods by which each form of any resource can be uniquely named and referred to. This is what facilitates smooth integration and interoperation across different technologies and applications.
- In phenotyping experiments, for example, all physical objects including sensors, biological samples and pots must be uniquely identified with URIs so that links between them are established for deriving knowledge. This scenario is particularly relevant for high-throughput experiments where thousands of plants need to be tested against certain factors.
- The semantic meaningful identifiers within the URI strategy include contextual information, like the year and experiment name, in addition to a local identifier of the object. This is complemented by QR codes to be accessed by any device and drawing links between objects.
- URIs identifying physical objects should follow the same rules as those identifying Virtual Resources. They must be clear, unique, persistent & stable, and resolvable. Good URI design is important to avoid a spectrum of issues.
- URIs will quite often be an appropriate choice for identifying many types of physical resources; however in other cases existing identifiers are more appropriate, like ISBNs for books or ORCIDs for researchers.
Conclusion
The URI is among the key concepts in the Internet world. It allows for the identification and access of different resources in a uniform way. This is because URIs specify the protocol, location, and optional parameters to access resources; therefore, they allow seamless integration and interoperability among different technologies and applications.
Moreover, URIs make for a good and flexible way to uniquely identify and link physical objects in favor of traceability, interlinking knowledge, and system interoperability. Their use has, however, to be carefully considered based on specific objects and context.
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