OSGeodata metadata exchange protocol

This is part of a discussion around a geographic metadata model and an exchange protocol.

See also OSGeodataMetadataModel and generally OSGeodata.

Overview

A protocol specification consists of requests (operations) and responses (information model encoded in a streaming format and error messages, as codes).

We distinguish specifically query/search protocols and harvesting procotols.

Protocol Approaches: Searching or Harvesting?

Geographic Metadata Harvesting Protocol approaches and specifications:

• Use HTTP and XML ('autonomous discovery')
• OAI-PMH including a comparison with WFS (profiled)

CSW, WFS and for example SRU/SRW are implementations of a search protocol. Proposals like OGC's CSW 2.0 do not fulfill these requirements. Profiled specifications like OAI-PMH or WFS are currently on our short list (see Proposals below).

Proposals

We tend to propose a harvesting approach which means, that

1. in a first step data according to OSGeodataMetadataModel and encoded as XML files are published
2. and in a second step OAI-PMH could be utilized, moving around the same XML files.

Better name sought (catalogue is probably not the most appropriate noun):

• Geographic Metadata Syndication Protocol (my favourite)
• Geographic Metadata Harvesting Protocol
• Other proposals?
  • Geographic Data Discovery Protocol
  • Geographic Metadata Dissemination Protocol

Weblinks

• Simple Catalog Interface at OSGeo Wiki as well as the OSGeodata mailing list mentioned above
• OAI-PMH - including home, wikipedia, documents, tutorials, tools and demos
• Introduction to the IESR: A Registry of Collections and Services, by Hill and Ann Apps, MIMAS, Univ. of Manchester, 2006.
• Other
  • OGC's CSW 2.0
  • OGC's WFS