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Earth Sciences Sector Portal streamlines data searching
Knowing how to locate what you're looking for is the first step in finding it. That's why the GeoConnections Discovery Portal (geodiscover.cgdi.ca) has gained such favour with professionals, researchers, teachers, and students alike.
In essence, the Portal serves as an on-line window to the geospatial data world. Clients can use the Portal to find information on Canadian and global geospatial organizations, data products, and services. Clients can also download data, order it, or see it on-line in the form of maps or images. Suppliers can advertise their data and services. And web developers can build interactive maps that combine data from a host of sources.
Harnessing the Discovery Portal's advanced software and standards, the Earth Sciences Sector (ESS) of Natural Resources Canada has made it even easier for Canadians to get specific information about ESS geology and geomatics–a subset of the larger Discovery Portal content.
Visit ESS's "Data Products" page at http://ess.nrcan.gc.ca/prod_e.php, and you'll find a list of many ESS data products that provide a wealth of maps and scientific information pertaining to Canada and its offshore areas. The list of products directs clients to information on geology, geodesy (geological mathematics), land surveying, mapping, and remote sensing.
Eighty-five percent of visitors to the ESS website come from outside the Department. Clients include mineral and oil and gas exploration companies, environmental agencies, emergency-response organizations, land-use planners, teachers, students, media, and researchers.
Leveraging the GeoConnections Discovery Portal
In an effort to offer greater value to end users, ESS wanted to offer simple and direct access to the hundreds of geological and geomatics data products available from the Sector. The problem was, however, that these data products are owned or managed by different people and organizations throughout ESS.
One solution would have been to manually create and maintain a list of data products under a variety of categories and to have had individual owners provide the information themselves. Obtaining this information can be difficult, however, and keeping it current can be even harder.
"We needed a more elegant way of organizing a listing of data products," says Bev Kouri, Head, ESS Government On-line Office. "We knew about the GeoConnections Discovery Portal, and with a little fine-tuning, we leveraged that resource to feed ESS data into our search application."
CGDI-endorsed standards underlie information sharing
Information (or metadata) about data products within the GeoConnections Discovery Portal adhere to an international metadata standard endorsed for the CGDI. Consequently, the records in the GeoConnections Discovery Portal share the same standardized fields, which makes these Canadian databases easy to search.
Capitalizing on this metadata standard, the ESS Government On-line Office asked owners and managers of ESS data products to ensure that they had correctly registered their products with the GeoConnections Discovery Portal. "Once the owners register their products, we can help clients find those data products faster and easier," says Ms. Kouri. "Essentially, we simplify searches by taking advantage of the metadata standards used in the GeoConnections Discovery Portal."
A host of search options
Over six months, the ESS Government On-line Office and Discovery Portal staff worked with data owners to update and add new codes to all 271 ESS data products in the GeoConnections Discovery Portal. These codes enable clients to find what they're looking for with minimal searching. And rather than simply list the data products on its website, ESS categorized them by organization, subject, type, and title.
In other words, clients can view these 271 products in several ways. Each product list is presented in the style of the ESS website, and each data-product link takes clients to the GeoConnections Discovery Portal. There they can get more detail about the data product, its owner and purpose, and the access options.
"This search flexibility allows clients to find the ESS information they want fast," says Ms. Kouri. "They don't have to wade through hundreds of irrelevant data products to discover the gems they're looking for."
Adding value for Canadians
In short, the ESS portal offers several benefits. First, it gives clients a quick and easy way to find specific information within the GeoConnections Discovery Portal. Second, the portal offers suppliers visibility for their data products. And three, by giving product lists a high profile, the portal encourages ESS data owners to keep their GeoConnections Discovery Portal information up to date. This approach contributes to a better catalogue in the GeoConnections Discovery Portal and keeps the ESS data products list current.
Faster access, current information, and greater supplier visibility add up to better value for Canadians who want to find geological and geomatics information on the Internet.
| GeoConnections is a national partnership initiative led by Natural Resources Canada to build the Canadian Geospatial Data Infrastructure (CGDI) and make Canada's geospatial databases, tools, and services readily accessible on-line. |