Notes from today's OpenTox meeting with an emphasis on advancing 
development/industrialisation and ideas on WGs.

best regards
Barry


OpenTox Association Meeting Notes
6 March 2015

Discussion between:
James Sluka, Micha Rautenburg, David Gallagher, Tim Dudgeon, Jeff 
Wisemam, Gladys Ouedraogo, Markus Hegi, Barry Hardy

Development/Industrialisation
- need to advance industrialisation of OpenTox tools
- move SW from R&D to good end user tools
- will we provide consulting, support, how, different to R&D approach?
- business case of regulators needing OS software for legal situations
- need for local installation of OpenTox SW at commercial orgaisations
- potential for secure cloud solutions gaining acceptance
- importance of security/confidentiality with industry
- need for an addition of quality to OS release to industry: e.g., 
support, documentation
- provide better documentation, guidance to new developers getting started
- Address sustainability issues: current inadequate funding models (both 
US and EU), talk to regulatory agencies and goverments on better longer 
term infrastructure investments sustaining data resources in 
toxicology/exposure. Lobbying needed by exec committee.
- need for business model beyond R&D projects
- need to cover data sets where tech and data structures changing 
frequently e.g., next gen omics

"Google" Issues
- no-indexing of xml files
- current issue of going to different databases, not just having data 
available, no matter where it is located

Potential Working Groups
1) API WG: Goal - Update to OpenTox API (Christoph Helma interested in 
taking a lead role)
2) Deployment WG; Deployment and Installation of OpenTox SW, Directory 
of Services (Tim Dudgeon interest in lead)
3) Ontology WG: Continued development of Tox Ontology (James Sluka interest)
4) User WG? Outreach & Needs. How would it be structured? Different sub 
groups with different interests e.g., REACH, Alternative Methods
5) "Radical Data" WG: will advance with innovative methods ways of 
getting into OpenTox and available (James, Barry)
6) Quality WG: e.g., code review, support models, protocols, curation, 
AOp development

Cool Idea
- advance data input into OpenTox with data processing workflows 
including extraction, automatic service installation, crowsourcing 
(James, Barry to followup on)