Murmurations is a distributed data sharing protocol. It describes a method for coordinating the storage, indexing and retrieval of data over a distributed network, as explained in the updated version of the Murmurations white paper.
The original white paper was written and published in September 2019 and had hence become out of date.
The updated white paper introduces Murmurations as a distributed data sharing protocol and explains the advantages of using distributed, interoperable data over conventional, siloed databases. It goes on to explain all of the concepts and terminology used in Murmurations, including the field and schema libraries, core and add-on schemas, as well detailing how Murmurations can be used to map relationship in the form of triples.
Recognising that, at the moment, the Index is the only centralised aspect of Murmurations the new white paper also goes into detail about how other indexes can be set up and synchronised to provide a completely distributed data-sharing network.
As well as detailing all of the existing free and open source tools which have been developed on top of the Murmurations protocol the updated white paper also discusses future development, including ideas for handling data privacy so that access to specific fields within a Murmurations profile can be restricted to certain users.
The white paper is designed for a technical audience but is not rocket science and we welcome feedback.
Download the Murmurations white paper.
There is nothing more difficult to take in hand, more perilous to conduct, or more uncertain in its success, than to take the lead in the introduction of a new order of things.
Niccolò Machiavelli
If you are new to Murmurations the following links may be useful:
We run two identical environments, one for testing and one for production, featuring the following tools:
- An Index Explorer for searching the data in the Murmurations index
- A Profile Generator for creating, and optionally hosting, Murmurations profiles
- A Index Updater for adding, updating and removing profiles from the index
- A Batch importer for registering large batches of CSV data for multiple profiles with the index
We have also built out a range of supporting resources to help you learn about and get
involved with the project:
- Our demonstration maps and directories show example using the components above
- The status reporting tool shows the performance of the network
- Our documentation provide full details explaining how all the components can be used
We have also developed two WordPress Plugins:
- The Murmurations Profile Generator Plugin – which makes it simple to publish and
share details about People, Projects, Organisations, or Offers and Wants from within
WordPress - The Murmurations Collaborative Map Builder Plugin – which makes it simple to
create, curate and update maps and directories of People, Projects, Organisations,
or Offers and Wants using WordPress