Preserving State and Local Government Digital Geospatial Data Steve Morris Head of Digital Library Initiatives North Carolina State University Libraries ALA NDIIPP SymposiumJune 25, 2007

Note: Percentages based on the actual number of respondents to each question 2 NC Geospatial Data Archiving Project Partnership between university library (NCSU) and state agency (NC Center for Geographic Information & Analysis) Focus on state and local geospatial content in North Carolina (state demonstration) Tied to NC OneMap initiative, which provides for seamless access to data, metadata, and inventories Objective: engage existing state/federal geospatial data infrastructures in preservation Serve as catalyst for discussion within industry

Note: Percentages based on the actual number of respondents to each question 3 NCGDAP: Targeted Content Resource Types GIS “vector” (point/line/polygon) data Digital orthophotography Digital maps Tabular data (e.g. assessment data) Content Producers Mostly state, local, regional agencies Some university, not-for-profit, commercial Selected local federal projects

Note: Percentages based on the actual number of respondents to each question 4 Targeted data: Vector data Cadastral (tax parcels) Street centerlines Zoning Topographic contours School, sheriff, fire Voting precincts More … 98 of 100 NC counties have GIS More detailed, accurate, current Subject to frequent update

Note: Percentages based on the actual number of respondents to each question 5 Targeted data: Digital orthophotography 90+ NC counties with orthophotos 1-5 flights per county gb per flight

Note: Percentages based on the actual number of respondents to each question 6 GIS Software Software project file (.mxd,.apr, …) Data layer file (.avl,.lyr, …) PDF map exports Web Services-based representations Targeted data: Cartographic

Note: Percentages based on the actual number of respondents to each question 7 Not yet targeted data: Place-based data Mobile, LBS, and, social networking applications Long-term cultural heritage value in non-overhead imagery: more descriptive of place and function Oblique Imagery DOT Videologs Tax Dept. Photos Street View Images

Note: Percentages based on the actual number of respondents to each question 8 Risks to Digital Geospatial Data.shp.mif.gml.e00.dwg.dgn.bsb.bil.sid

Note: Percentages based on the actual number of respondents to each question 9 Risks to State/Local Geospatial Data Producer focus on current data Data overwrite as common practice Future support of data formats in question No open, supported format for vector data Shift to web services-based access Data becoming more ephemeral Inadequate or nonexistent metadata Impedes discovery and use Increasing use of spatial databases for data management The whole is greater than the sum of the parts

Note: Percentages based on the actual number of respondents to each question 10 Local Applications Where GIS Is Used Source: NC OneMap Data Inventory 2004

Note: Percentages based on the actual number of respondents to each question 11 Temporal Data Supports Decision-Making Land use change analysis Real estate trend analysis Site selection (past uses?) Forecasting Parcel Boundary Changes North Raleigh, NC

Note: Percentages based on the actual number of respondents to each question 12 Suburban Development 1993/2002 Near Mecklenburg-Cabarrus County border Temporal Data Supports Decision-Making

13 Wake County, NC Interstate 540 / US Highway 70 Interchange Near Raleigh/Durham International Airport 2005 Wake County Ortho

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Note: Percentages based on the actual number of respondents to each question 15 Today’s geospatial data as tomorrow’s cultural heritage Future uses of data are difficult to anticipate (as with Sanborn Maps).

Note: Percentages based on the actual number of respondents to each question 16 Challenge: Vector Data Formats No widely-supported, open vector formats for geospatial data Spatial Data Transfer Standard (SDTS) not widely supported Geography Markup Language (GML) – diversity of application schemas and profiles threatens permanent access Spatial Databases The whole is more than the sum of the parts, and the whole is very difficult to preserve Can export individual data layers for curation Some thinking of using the spatial database as the primary archival platform

Note: Percentages based on the actual number of respondents to each question 17 Challenge: Cartographic Representation Counterpart to the map is not just the dataset but also models, symbolization, classification, annotation, etc.

Note: Percentages based on the actual number of respondents to each question 18 Challenge: Geospatial Web Services How to capture records from decision- making processes? Possible: Atlas collections from automated image capture Web 2.0 impact: Emerging tiling and caching schemes (archive target?)

Note: Percentages based on the actual number of respondents to each question 19 Challenge: Preservation Metadata Results from a 2006 survey of all 100 NC counties and 25 largest NC municipalities

Note: Percentages based on the actual number of respondents to each question 20 NCGDAP Project Directions Working with state spatial data infrastructure on content exchange mechanisms Infrastructure being created for other business reasons Benefit to archive in terms of lower acquisition costs, better metadata, established provennance Co-established the Data Preservation Working Group in the Open Geospatial Consortium Insert temporal use cases into specification processes Collaboration with State Archives Work towards infusing local records outreach and records retention with geospatial components

Note: Percentages based on the actual number of respondents to each question 21 Questions? Steve Morris Head, Digital Library Initiatives NCSU Libraries ph: (919)