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Geospatial overviewThe purpose is to describe geospatial characteristics of resources. However, since geospatial searching can be challenging and computer intensive, geospatial information is layered in the framework. This layering will provide the appropriate level of search precision and the ability to expedite the return of search results based on how geospatially detailed library users wish to go. In addition, the information captured is consistent with information in other standard frameworks like FDGC and Dublin Core and the simple GIS community. Experts in library science, software engineering and geoscience from the Alexandria Digital Library, the Colorado School of Mines and the DLESE Program Center participated in the development of the framework's geospatial concepts over an 18 month period. The geospatial characteristics captured in the framework are:
The preprint article, Core Element of Digital Gazetteers: Placenames, Categories, and Footprints, by Linda Hill of the Alexandria Digital Library Project (last known link) suggests that search using just overarching bounding boxes is probably sufficient to meet most digital library user needs. However, it is the providers of geoscience data who often want more detailed geospatial information. Thus, this part of the framework accommodates this need by encoding detailed geometries. The geospatial section is not meant to describe data set variables or the content of numerical models. Geospatial information is purposely separate from temporal information because it will have to be searched over separately. Secondly, most of the standard metadata frameworks keep geospatial and temporal information separate. Further informationTo see more detailed information about individual metadata fields, the allowed number of field occurrences, controlled vocabularies or XML structures, please refer to the desired version number of the framework on the left-side navigation menu and then go to the See in XML section. Last updated: 9-18-03
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