Developing "humane" interfaces to data clearinghouses for improving the delivery of spatial information to marine resource managers

Web geographic information systems (GISs) and the Internet are now providing the connectivity necessary to support large-scale data access by a wide variety of users, including not just scientific researchers, but also policy-makers and marine resource managers. However, connectivity alone cannot ensure that those who need natural resource information will be able to locate relevant data. Data clearinghouses need to provide user interfaces that help a broad user community understand what spatial data are available, how they can be obtained, and how they should be interpreted. The Metadata Humane Society project conducted by researchers at Oregon State University combined traditional interface engineering knowledge, scientific research and geographic information science (www.nacse.org/mhs). The researchers wanted to improve access to spatial information by identifying the primary barriers to usability for the National Geospatial Data Clearinghouse (NGDC) interfaces. The project included developing an understanding of the current state of usability among GIS-related Web sites that provide metadata search facilities and identifying promising approaches to “learnability” and navigability that might be exploited in improving the NGDC interfaces. To accomplish these 3 goals, three types of usability evaluations were performed: initial predictive evaluation of existing sites, user testing of existing NGDC Interface, and a user expectations survey. The evaluations involved actual users from a range of disciplinary backgrounds and user communities, as well different levels of expertise. The project found that different levels of user expertise require distinct subsets of the usability criteria. It is recommended that there be at least two interfaces available for the NGDC addressing different target audiences, and that each interface should focus on certain criteria. To improve the delivery of spatial information to marine resource managers, these recommendations to increase usability should be applied to data clearinghouses such as the Virtual Oregon, Oregon Coast Geospatial Clearinghouse and the Geography Network

Developing the Oregon Spatial Data Library

The Oregon Spatial Data Library (http://spatialdata.oregonexplorer.info/) provides easy and convenient ways to find, access, and share geospatial data. Developed in partnership with the Oregon Department of Administrative Services (DAS), the Oregon Spatial Data Library provides access to spatial data including "framework" data for the State of Oregon. Framework datasets serve as "base data" for a variety of GIS applications that support important research, business, and public services. Administrative boundaries, transportation, land use, ownership, water, hazards, and wetlands are examples of framework data.Keywords: GIS, spatial data, data libraries, mapsKeywords: GIS, spatial data, data libraries, map

Maps for the Masses: The Oregon Spatial Data Library

This presentation about the Oregon Spatial Data Library (OSDL) (http://spatialdata.oregonexplorer.info/) was delivered to the Western Association of Map Libraries in March 2010. The OSDL provides convenient ways to find, access, and share geospatial data and was developed in partnership with the Oregon Department of Administrative Services (DAS). The Oregon Spatial Data Library provides access to spatial data including "framework" data for the State of Oregon.Presented at: Spring Meeting 2010. Western Association of Map Libraries, Eugene, Oregon, March 17-20, 2010.Keywords: Data curation, Oregon Explorer, Spatial dat

Statewide Spatial Data Clearinghouses: an Oregon Case Study

Collaborative planning to streamline as well as to provide citizens with easier access to geospatial data has a long history in Oregon. A milestone in this process was the launch of the Oregon Spatial Data Library (OSDL) in November 2009. The Oregon Spatial Data Library is a joint effort between the Department of Administrative Services Geospatial Enterprise Office and Oregon State University. The OSDL provides a method for sharing public domain geospatial data at no cost to the user and is part of Oregon’s participation in the National Spatial Data Infrastructure (NSDI). This article reviews the nationwide setting for development of the NSDI and subsequent development of state geospatial clearinghouses. The paper first reviews these clearinghouses with a specific focus on five user-centric characteristics: keyword search options; availability of training or documentation; ease of access to metadata; presence of locally unique data; and calls for data or metadata contributions. These characteristics address the perspective of users who are neither GIS experts nor familiar with the clearinghouses. Information literacy concepts and the literature review informed the selection of the characteristics used in the review. The OSDL is reviewed in the same manner with the intention of commenting on steps which might be taken to make it more effective in the future.Keywords: Oregon Spatial Data Library, Framework data (GIS), Oregon Geospatial Enterprise Office, NSDI, OSDL, National Spatial Data Infrastructure, Spatial dat

The Oregon Spatial Data Library: a public resource

This presentation provides an overview of the tools and functionality of the Oregon Spatial Data Library (OSDL), partnerships formed to enhance dataset contribution, and user feedback informing the next development phase. Oregon is a natural resource rich state. Those natural resources cut across many jurisdictions. All of these use and create data about the state on a regular basis. With this in mind, the targeted primary users for the OSDL are the staff within federal, state, county and municipal government agencies, and within the sovereign tribes. The OSDL (http://spatialdata.oregonexplorer.info/ ) provides public access to reliable and up-to-date spatial data about Oregon. Currently all Oregon statewide framework data are available from this site and serve as “base data” for GIS applications supporting research, business and public services. More than 200 spatial datasets were accessible at its launch in November 2009. Collaboration with the University of Oregon Libraries will increase that number substantially in 2010. The OSDL joins the Oregon Department of Administrative Services Geospatial Enterprise Office, Oregon State University Libraries, the Institute for Natural Resources and other dataset providers in a common goal: curation of spatial data for maximum use and minimum duplication of effort.Presented at the 23rd International Union of Forest Research Organizations (IUFRO) World Congress in Seoul, South Korea, 23-28 August, 2010.Keywords: data curation, digital libraries, framework data, spatial dataKeywords: data curation, digital libraries, framework data, spatial dat

The Oregon Coastal and Marine Data Network Workshop Summary

The purpose of the Oregon Coastal and Marine Data Network Workshop was to begin to set the stage for fostering a network of people and data. The workshop was designed to enable individuals in agencies and other organizations who are directly engaged in coastal marine spatial planning to discuss and resolve issues related to creating a collaborative Oregon coastal and marine data network. This network would serve the needs of the broad community of agencies, institutions, and the wider coastal and marine data user community. The objectives of the workshop were threefold: * Provide existing examples and models for user community interaction and discussion on coastal and marine institutional data collection, sharing, and integration; * Identify and prioritize issues, solutions, and action items that would enable coastal and marine data producers and users to be long-term data stewards; and, *Draft a framework for an Oregon user community network to address coastal and marine data stewardship and technical concerns. Thirty-six people from Oregon, California, and Washington represented state and federal agencies, nongovernmental organizations, environmental consulting firms, universities, and data collaboratives (Appendix A) at the workshop. The workshop was sponsored by the Department of Land Conservation and Development; the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement; and Oregon Sea Grant

Rare, Threatened and Endangered Species of Oregon

Extinction is a natural process. Today, however, plant and animal species are disappearing world-wide at an accelerated pace. Based on current trends, half of the species on earth will be extinct within the next 100 years. The major cause of this phenomenon is large-scale destruction of native habitats, which has increased since European settlement began in the mid 1800\u27s - in Oregon and throughout the New World. Once lost, a species can never be recovered, and there is no way of knowing how useful it may have been. We do know that human beings and many of their industries depend on plant and animal products. About 50% of all pharmaceuticals have a natural component as an active ingredient, yet less than one percent of the world\u27s species have been chemically analyzed and tested. Many invertebrates and plants contain undescribed and highly functional compounds. Limnanthes floccosa subsp. grandiflora, or wooly meadow-foam, a rare plant that grows in southwest Oregon, has been recently found to produce a hybrid with the more common member of the genus, Limnanthes alba. This hybrid grows well in the poorly drained soils of the Willamette Valley and produces a valuable oil used for soaps, plastic and rubber production. In addition, the new hybrid meadow-foam does not require the field burning necessary for other crops. This species, and many other Oregon natives, will be lost without intervention. The purpose of this publication is to provide land managers, owners and interested parties with a list of those species in Oregon which are in greatest jeopardy