Getting things done: outcomes

It was agreed ongoing work should proceed on the basis of the respective breakout groups, and areas identified by them. “Partnerships” in these respective areas should be established through ESP, with individuals free to participate according to their interests. The aim is to investigate, develop, and recommend standards in these areas through a community process. These should be reported back to ESP as strawman models.

The following areas of work were suggested by the “Getting things done/process” breakout group:

• security
• vocabulary
• data models
• metadata
• services
• funding options

In addition, the themed breakout groups suggested the following areas of focus during discussion, resulting from their respective earlier deliberations:

• Web Portal User Framework
• Features necessary in portal
• User interface design
• Security
• Publish CLRC security model
• Security interoperability demo/testbed
• Distributed search capabilities
• Implement Open Archive Initiative Dublin Core and/or DIF at number of sites
• Catalogues/catalogue services
• Investigate DocBuilder for other metadata schemas
• List on the ESP website metadata crosswalks that have been done
• Discuss options for cataloguing standards (including THREDDS?)
• Vocabulary
• Provide ESP with feed back on the EnParDis project
• Potential collaboration with CF
• Develop process for recognising standard vocabularies
• Services
• Investigate GADS/OPeNDAP interoperability
• Survey existing service interfaces and shortfalls
• Produce a service taxonomy
• ESP partners to look into Web Services

Two additional areas were suggested during general discussion on “getting things done/process”:

• Globally unique dataset identifiers
• Funding options

It was agreed the ESP mailing list should be used as an organising forum for these different “partnership areas”. It was recognised that the respective areas should be able to set their own agendas in addition to those recommended above.

Finally, the ESP “one-pager” should include:

• a statement on commitment to open source (but not an exclusion from using commercial/proprietary systems)
• a statement of commitment to using Web Services to expose resources