[Developers] Announcing the Freebase Schema Explorer

[Stefano Mazzocchi]

If you're like me, MQL often feels like a combination of power and dark 
magic:  some people can whip up a MQL query in no time, like they knew 
all about every type, every property and how they link all the various 
pieces of the graph together.

Asking around how people did it, yielded several strategies... but many 
basically revolved around using the 'explore pages' (those magically 
revealed by hitting the F8 key on freebase.com... yeah, I know, don't 
get me started on that one).

Then David wrote the new query editor, with the amazing context 
completion and I thought I was set... but while my MQL mojo improved a 
lot with it, it always felt like something was missing: if I knew the 
type I wanted, I could get started... but what if I didn't know where to 
start? what if I didn't know how to construct the query and I needed 
some guidance in navigating how the types were all connected together? 
(especially with CVTs and whatnot)

I felt like I was in a fog and with no map: finding my way out felt 
tentative at best, frustrating at worst.

The Jason showed me an acre app he had written a long time ago and that 
he uses all the time that offered a browsable interface to all the 
freebase domains, types and properties, their IDs... and how they all 
connect together.

I had found my map.

Unfortunately, while extremely useful already, the schema explorer app 
needed some love... so I decided to give it some and the result has been 
so successful internally that I'm happy to announce it to the public so 
that everybody can benefit from it. Find it at:



                     http://schemas.freebaseapps.com/


I hope you'll find it as useful as I do.

NOTES:

1) suggestions/criticism/feature-requests appreciated and welcome

2) this is an acre app and if you're curious (or interested in forking 
it) you can find it at:

         http://acre.freebase.com/#app=/user/jdouglas/schemas

3) this couldn't have been possible without Jason's work upon which I 
built this so kudos go to him while all the mistakes remain mine

4) I've been working on integrating the schema explorer with the 
upcoming freebase developer's documentation hub, so that newcomers won't 
have to hunt down this URL in the mail archives to find a little 
guidance in the type maze.

Enjoy!

-- 
Stefano Mazzocchi                              Application Catalyst
Metaweb Technologies, Inc.                      stefano at metaweb.com
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