Semantic Web Developer

Description

Cornell University Library Information Technologies (CUL-IT) seeks an enthusiastic Ruby developer to help develop the library’s evolving information architecture and services. Work will focus on collaborative use of Linked Data and the Semantic Web in improving library discovery systems. They will apply solid technical and programming expertise of software, hardware, operating system, database and web programming languages in accomplishing these tasks. They will work in a small team collaborating with other CUL-IT, library, Cornell and partner institution staff at Stanford and Harvard (see http://news.library.cornell.edu/news/131220/mellon).

The library’s discovery and access system blends Ruby/Rails/Blacklight/Hydra web-applications (http://projecthydra.org) with a sophisticated linked-data back-end based on Vitro/VIVO. The developer will work with both of these technology stacks to produce software libraries and applications that access and manipulate linked-data within the Hydra framework.

This is a two year appointment with possible extension dependent upon funding.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science or related discipline.
• Four or more years of professional experience developing data-driven web applications in a Linux/Unix environment.
• Must have demonstrated experience developing substantial software projects in Ruby on Rails and a willingness to learn and work in other languages and frameworks.
• Must have experience with Linked Data and associated technologies including triple stores, SPARQL, and semantic web data formats (RDF/XML, ntriples, nquads, etc).
• Experience with web technologies including HTML, JavaSript, CSS and XML. Ability to manage complex software development in a team environment using tools such as Git and Jira.
• Excellent trouble-shooting and problem-solving skills with both new and legacy code.
• Excellent communication skills, both oral and written.
• Proven ability to work productively in a supportive role with colleagues and in a team environment, yet also self-motivated and possessing good independent decision making abilities.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Master’s degree in an information science (library science, information science, computer science, or equivalent).
• Experience with multiple languages such as Java.
• Familiarity with Agile programming and project best practices such as test driven development, continuous integration, and working in sprints.
• Working experience with metadata standards, digital collection management systems, library management systems, and software application design/development/customization in a networked environment.
• Demonstrated awareness of digital collection management and metadata issues.