On 2/24/2011 8:06 AM, Ted Habermann wrote:
Hello all,
There was some recent discussion about challenges related to adding
ISO metadata to netCDF files. Rich Signell mentioned some work my
group has been doing recently and John Graybeal pointed out that
initially that work has focused on the NcML > ISO side of the
equation. We have also focused on the Data Discovery Conventions more
than the more use oriented CF-Conventions.
As Martin Schultz pointed out initially, the problem is meshing the
well developed ISO structure with the parameter-value tradition of
netCDF. The current approach I am experimenting with involves creating
components of ISO documentation that are identified by UUID's and
embedding those UUID's as values for attributes with standard names in
the netCDF, possibly in a special group called ISO_Metadata
(whatever). The names of these attributes would indicate their
location in the full ISO record and they would be inserted into the
record during a translation step. This would create a record with
references that could then be resolved at the users request. There is
a discussion of this general approach to the ISO at
https://geo-ide.noaa.gov/wiki/index.php?title=ISO_Components. It may
be a step in the right direction...?
Hi Ted,
I think this is definitely a step in the right direction. By its nature
metadata records need in to have a level of independence from the data
files, themselves. The metadata must evolve, as knowledge of and
documentation of a dataset continues to grow after the dataset has been
published. My personal 2 cents: embedding "use metadata" and some
"discovery metadata" feels like the right level of detail to include in
the netCDF file, itself ... augmented by the linkages you are proposing,
which would connect the data file to full-detail (ISO), evolving
metadata records.
When it is ready, I hope you'll send a specific proposal on how to
achieve these linkages for comments/discussion on this list.
- Steve
BTW, there are also some revisions to 19115 that are in the pipeline
and will help with the CF->ISO translation. These are described at
https://geo-ide.noaa.gov/wiki/index.php?title=Coverages_and_ISO_Metadata
Ted Habermann
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