Contents:

• Overview
• Specification Publication History
• Principal References
• General References: News, Papers, Articles

Overview: The Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC) "is a non-profit, international, voluntary consensus standards organization that is leading the development of standards for geospatial and location based services. Its goal is to provide free and openly available standards to the market, tangible value to Members, and measurable benefits to users. This international industry consortium as of June 2008 included 369 companies, government agencies and universities participating in a consensus process to develop publicly available interface specifications. OpenGIS Specifications support interoperable solutions that "geo-enable" the Web, wireless and location-based services, and mainstream IT. The specifications empower technology developers to make complex spatial information and services accessible and useful with all kinds of applications... Underlying all the committees, working groups, test beds and other OGC activities is a member approved process that encourages collaboration among and between OGC members to define, document, and implement open specifications that solve geospatial interoperability problems. The OGC exists to enable a fast, effective, inclusive, user-driven process to develop, test, demonstrate, and promote the use of geospatial information and services by using OpenGIS Specifications..."

In November 2008 the Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC) announced the completion and availability of Version 2.0 of the OGC Reference Model (ORM). The ORM "provides a framework for the ongoing work of the OGC and a guide for those who seek to implement interoperable solutions and applications for geospatial services and data. The ORM focuses on relationships between the documents in the OGC Standards Baseline (SB), which consists of the approved OpenGIS Abstract and Implementation Standards (Interface, Encoding, Profile, Application Schema), and OGC Best Practice documents. The ORM provides insight into the current state of the work of the OGC and thus serves as a useful resource for defining architectures for specific applications. It helps prospective members see how they might serve their stakeholders by making a contribution to the OGC process, and it provides overall guidance to developers who are implementing one or more of the OpenGIS Standards. The ORM contains numerous links to OGC resources that provide more detailed information. It is the result of extensive development by hundreds of OGC Member Organizations and tens of thousands of individuals who have contributed to the development of OGC standards since 1994." See the Table of Contents for an overview.

Specification Publication History

[Incomplete]

2004-09-15 Note: On September 1, 2004 OGC announced it has changed its name from Open GIS Consortium to Open Geospatial Consortium, Inc. "The new name reflects the Consortium's wide scope of work in a broad geospatial marketplace that includes not only geographic information systems (GIS), but also mapping, earth imaging, sensor webs, and mobile wireless services. It also highlights the importance of OGC Web services standards as part of information technology best practices for integrating geospatial processing into service oriented architectures and enterprise workflows."

[July 07, 2005]   OGC Releases GML Simple Features Profile Specification for Review.    The Open Geospatial Consortium Inc. has issued an invitation for public review of a GML Simple Features Profile specification. OGC's Geography Markup Language (GML), now being prepared for publication as ISO/IEC 19136 Geographic Information — Geography Markup Language by ISO/TC 211/WG 4 (Geographic Information/Geomatics). OGC Specification Profiles are subsets of existing OpenGIS Specifications. GML is an XML grammar written in XML Schema for the modelling, transport, and storage of geographic information. This GML profile is a product of OGC's Interoperability Program: "a global, collaborative, hands-on engineering and testing program designed to deliver prototype technologies and proven candidate specifications into the OGC's Specification Development Program. In OGC Interoperability Initiatives, international teams of technology providers work together to solve specific geo-processing interoperability problems posed by Initiative." The new GML Simple Features Profile defines a restricted but useful subset of XML-Schema and GML. The Geography Markup Language (GML) full specification defines "an XML grammar for the encoding of geographic information including geographic features, coverages, observations, topology, geometry, coordinate reference systems, units of measure, time, and value objects. The GML Simple Feature Profile candidate specification defines a set of schema encoding rules that allow simple features, such as points, lines, and polygons, to be described using GML application schemas." The Profile's restricted subset GML is designed to "lower the implementation bar of time and resources required for an organization to commit for developing software that supports GML. It is hoped that by lowering the effort required to manipulate XML encoded feature data, organizations will be encouraged to invest more time and effort to take greater advantage of GML's rich functionality."

[March 26, 2004]   Geography Markup Language (GML) Version 3.1 Public Release from Open GIS Consortium.    The membership of the Open GIS Consortium (OGC) has approved the release of the OpenGIS Geography Markup Language (GML) Implementation Specification Version 3.1.0 as a publicly available OpenGIS Recommendation Paper. The GML specification is now being edited jointly in the OGC GML Revision Working Group and in ISO/TC 211/WG 4 (Geographic Information/Geomatics). The ISO version is now Committee Draft level (ISO/CD 19136), while the OGC version is characterized as a Recommendation Paper in order to maintain alignment with the ISO editing process. The Geography Markup Language (GML) is the most widely supported open specification for representation of geographic (spatial and location) information. It defines XML encoding for the transport and storage of geographic information, including both the geometry and properties of geographic features. In keeping with OGC's IPR policies for Open GIS standards, GML is freely available for use on royalty-free terms. The GML Specifiction Version 3.1.0 has been edited by Simon Cox (CSIRO), Paul Daisey (U.S. Census Bureau), Ron Lake (Galdos Systems), Clemens Portele (Interactive Instruments), and Arliss Whiteside (BAE Systems). The 601-page prose document is supported by thirty-three (33) XML Schema files. The specification is based upon a large number of other standards; it normatively references the XML Linking Language (XLink) Version 1.0 and The Schematron Assertion Language 1.5. GML Version 3.1.0 adds new geometries, is more compliant with the ISO/TC 211 family of specifications, and contains some items for increased efficiency and simplicity. It "maintains backward compatibility for GML version 3.0.0 and 2.1.2 instance documents by preserving, but deprecating, some schema components that have been replaced by different constructs in the current version." The Open GIS Consortium, Inc (OGC) is "an international, member-driven, non-profit industry consortium of 258 companies, government agencies and universities participating in a consensus process to develop publicly available interface specifications and geoprocessing interoperability computing standards. OGC supports interoperable solutions that 'geo-enable' the Web, wireless and location-based services, and mainstream IT. The specifications empower technology developers to make complex spatial information and services accessible and useful with all kinds of applications."

[February 06, 2003]   OGC Announces OpenGIS Geography Markup Language Implementation Specification (GML 3).    The Open GIS Consortium has released an approved version 3.0 for the OpenGIS Geography Markup Language (GML) Implementation Specification. GML "is an XML grammar written in XML Schema for the modelling, transport, and storage of geographic information; it provides a variety of kinds of objects for describing geography including features, coordinate reference systems, geometry, topology, time, units of measure and generalized values. New additions in GML 3.0 include support for complex geometries, spatial and temporal reference systems, topology, units of measure, metadata, gridded data, and default styles for feature and coverage visualization. The GML 3.0 modular structure means that developers choosing to use GML can literally pick out the schemas or schema components that apply to their work. GML 3.0 also includes a sample packaging tool that creates a tailored schema containing only the required components from the GML core schemas. The normative parts of the specification use the W3C XML Schema language to describe the grammar of conformant GML data instances. The specification also uses the Recommended XML encoding of Coordinate Reference System definitions prepared by the CRS SIG of OGC. OGC is an international industry consortium of more than 240 companies, government agencies and universities participating in a consensus process to develop publicly available interface specifications. OpenGIS Specifications support interoperable solutions that 'geo-enable' the Web, wireless and location-based services, and mainstream IT."

[June 10, 2003]   OpenGIS Consortium Adopts Revised Royalty-Free Intellectual Property Rights Policy.    The Open GIS Consortium has announced the adoption of a revised IPR policy which requires all contributors to license technology on a royalty-free basis. OGC is an international industry consortium of 257 companies, government agencies, and universities participating in a consensus process to develop publicly available geo-processing specifications based upon XML. The OGC's revised IPR policy "takes into account the significant patent policy work undertaken at the W3C, which has emerged as the consortium leader in establishing a pragmatic way to successfully develop royalty-free Web Standards in the current patent environment. The result reflects agreement with the basic goal to preserve a free and open standards-based information infrastructure. At the same time, the new IPR policy respects the patent rights of member organizations and the value their patents represent." OGC members support the IPR policy "because there is a belief that OpenGIS specifications must be royalty free and unencumbered by patents, and therefore freely available to any party -- buyer, commercial developer, government agency, or open source developer -- that wants to implement OpenGIS Specifications in their enterprise." The OGC's revised IPR policy will take effect on July 05, 2003.

[April 22, 2003]   OGC Releases OpenGIS Location Services (OpenLS) Implementation Specification.    The Open GIS Consortium (OGC) has issued a public call for comment on a proposed OpenGIS Location Services (OpenLS) Implementation Specification. "The RFC defines XML for Location Services, which consists of interfaces for a variety of specific services. The primary objective of OpenLS is to define access to the Core Services and Abstract Data Types (ADT) that comprise the GeoMobility Server, an open location services platform. Abstract Data Type information (ADT) is the "basic information construct used by the GeoMobility Server and associated Core Services; it consists of well-known data types and structures for location information and is defined as application schemas that are encoded in XML for Location Services (XLS)." The OpenLS specification includes enhancements and fixes made by the work group following the OpenLS 1/1.1 testbed initiatives of October 2001 - October 2002; these testbed activities "attempted to define and build the core location application services and information framework necessary for interoperable use of mobile devices, services and location-related data." The release includes fifteen (15) supporting XML Schemas and prose specification in two parts. OpenLS: Core Services contains Parts 1-5. Core Services is also known as "the GeoMobility Server (GMS), an open platform for location-based application services. It also outlines the scope and relationship of OpenLS with respect to other specifications and standardization activities. Part 1 (Directory Service) is "a Yellow Pages used to find the nearest or a specific product or service; Part 2 (Gateway Service) fetches the position of a mobile device from the network; Part 3 (Location Utility Service) uses Geocoder/Reverse Geocoder, where Geocoder converts a location, such as a street address to a point with latitude/longitude and Reverse Geocoder transforms a given position into a description of a feature location, such as a street address; Part 4 (Presentation Service) implements map portrayal, and draws a map; Part 5 (Route Service) creates a travel route." OpenLS Part 6 Navigation Service was formerly the Full Profile of the Route Determination Service, which is part of the GeoMobility Server (GMS), an open location services platform. The Navigation Service is potentially not needed by all implementations. Annex A.1 of Core Services supplies a normative Schema (XML/S Profile), while Annex A.2 provides an informative SOAP Profile. The OpenLS implementation specification has been submitted to OGC by Autodesk, ESRI, Image Matters, Intergraph IntelliWhere, MapInfo, Navigation Technologies, Oracle, Sun Microsystems, and Webraska. Public comment is invited through May 19, 2003.

[January 08, 2003] The OpenGIS Geography Markup Language (GML) Implementation Specification Version 2.1.2 was published on 17-September-2002. "The Geography Markup Language (GML) is an XML encoding for the transport and storage of geographic information, including both the spatial and non-spatial properties of geographic features. This specification defines the XML Schema syntax, mechanisms, and conventions that (1) Provide an open, vendor-neutral framework for the definition of geospatial application schemas and objects; (2) Allow profiles that support proper subsets of GML framework descriptive capabilities; (3) Support the description of geospatial application schemas for specialized domains and information communities; (4) Enable the creation and maintenance of linked geographic application schemas and datasets; (5) Support the storage and transport of application schemas and data sets; (6) Increase the ability of organizations to share geographic application schemas and the information they describe. Implementers may decide to store geographic application schemas and information in GML, or they may decide to convert from some other storage format on demand and use GML only for schema and data transport... GML is positioned as an open data exchange standard, well suited for transmitting small to medium-sized volumes of information. GML is usable with all standard XML tools. Of particular note in this respect are the tools designed to filter XML (XSL) and to turn XML into a visual presentation (XSLT). Using the XSL tools, a fully functional GML database can be published into more limited versions. For example, in order to satisfy regulatory requirements, a subset of the data, perhaps with lower fidelity, can be automatically extracted. To share data with a supplier who is also a potential competitor, the data can first be filtered and adjusted on the basis of what the supplier needs to know."

[January 31, 2003]   OGC Working Group Issues Draft Specification for Sensor Model Language (SensorML).    The Open GIS Consortium Natural Resources and Environment (NRE) Working Group has released a draft specification for Sensor Model Language (SensorML) for In-Situ and Remote Sensors, together with fifteen XML Schemas. SensorML "provides an XML schema for defining the geometric, dynamic, and observational characteristics of a sensor. Sensors are devices for the measurement of physical quantities. There are a great variety of sensor types from simple visual thermometers to complex electron microscopes and earth observing satellites... The standardization of a Sensor Model Language (SensorML) and the availability of SensorML documents for all Earth observing sensors will allow for significant opportunities for software systems to support the processing, analysis, and visual fusion of multiple sensors. SensorML does not provide a detailed description of the hardware design of a sensor but rather it is a general schema for describing a functional model of the sensor. The schema is designed such that it can be used to support the processing and geolocation of data from virtually any sensor, whether mobile or dynamic, in-situ or remotely sensed, or active or passive. This allows one to develop general, yet robust, software that can process and geolocate data from a wide variety of sensors ranging from simple to complex sensor systems. SensorML supports both rigorous sensor models and mathematical sensor models. A rigorous sensor model is defined here as one that describes the geometry and dynamics of the instrument and provides specialized with the ability to utilize this information along with position and orientation of the platform in order to derive geolocation of the sensor data. sensor models are typically derived using a rigorous model, perhaps augmented by human interaction. These mathematical models typically hide the characteristics of the sensor, and allow for geolocation of sensor data through the use of polynomial functions."

[June 13, 2000] The OpenGIS Consortium recently published the first public release of a recommendation defining the Geography Markup Language (GML), Version 1.0. The Geography Markup Language (GML) "is an XML encoding for the transport and storage of geographic information, including both the geometry and properties of geographic features. This specification defines the mechanisms and syntax that GML uses to encode geographic information in XML. It is anticipated that GML will make a significant impact on the ability of organizations to share geographic information with one another, and to enable linked geographic datasets. The initial release of this specification is concerned with the XML encoding of what the OpenGIS Consortium (OCG) calls 'Simple Features'. . . The OpenGIS Abstract Specification defines a geographic feature as: 'A feature is an abstraction of a real world phenomenon; it is a geographic feature if it is associated with a location relative to the Earth." Thus a digital representation of the real world can be thought of as a set of features. The state of a feature is defined by a set of properties, where each property can be thought of as a {name, type, value} triple. The number of properties a feature may have, together with their names and types, are determined by its feature type. Geographic features are those with properties whose values may be a geometry. A feature collection is a collection of features that can itself be regarded as a feature. Consequently a feature collection has a feature type and thus may have properties of its own, in addition to the features it contains. . . GML follows the geometry model defined other OpenGIS specifications. For example, the traditional 0, 1 and 2-dimensional geometries defined in a two-dimensional spatial reference system (SRS) are represented by points, line strings and polygons. In addition the geometry model for simple features also allows geometries that are collections of other geometries (either homogeneous, multi point, multi line string and multi polygon, or heterogeneous, geometry collection). In all cases the 'top-most' geometry is responsible for indicating in which SRS the measurements have been made. . ."

"It is anticipated that GML will appeal to a broad class of users who will in turn wish to employ a variety of XML technologies. GML is thus presented in the form of three profiles as follows: Profile 1: for those who wish to use a pure DTD based solution and are not prepared to develop application specific DTDs, or wish data to be returned against a fixed set of DTDs. This profile requires the use of GML Feature, and GML Geometry DTDs. Profile 2: for those who wish to use a pure DTD based solution but are prepared to develop their own application specific DTDs, or are prepared to accept data encoded with a referenced DTD. This profile requires the user to create an application specific Feature DTD that uses the GML Geometry DTD. Profile 3: for those who are prepared to make use of RDF and RDF Schema. These users will typically require stronger control of the geospatial typing framework (e.g. they must be able to relate a type name to an actual schema definition). This profile requires the user to create an application specific RDF Schema definition that uses the GML RDF Schema definition. Alternatively Profile 3 users may employ DTDs which are derived in some fashion from an RDF Schema or which can trace their elements to types defined in an associated RDF Schema."

Principal References

• About OGC
• OGC Programs:
  • OGC Specification Program
  • OGC Interoperability Program
  • OGC Outreach and Adoption Programs
• Selected OGC Specifications:
  • Geography Markup Language
  • OGC KML
  • Sensor Model Language (SensorML)
  • OpenGIS Catalogue Service Implementation
  • GeoXACML Implemenation Specification
  • OpenGIS Location Service (OpenLS) Implementation Specification
  • Observations and Measurements
• OGC Standards:
  • Abstract Specification
  • Best Practices
  • Discussion Papers
  • White Papers
• OGC Implementations:
  • OGC Registered Products
  • OGC Cookbooks
  • OGC Demonstrations
  • OGC Compliance Testing

• In February 2004 The membership of the Open GIS Consortium (OGC) has approved the release of the OpenGIS Geography Markup Language (GML) Implementation Specification Version 3.1.0 as a publicly available OpenGIS Recommendation Paper. The GML specification is now being edited jointly in the OGC GML Revision Working Group and in ISO/TC 211/WG 4 (Geographic Information/Geomatics). See the news story and the file listing for the GML version 3.1.0 distribution.

• OpenGIS Geography Markup Language (GML) Implementation Specification. Edited by Simon Cox , Paul Daisey, Ron Lake, Clemens Portele, and Arliss Whiteside. Version 3.00. Date: 2003-01-29. Category: OpenGIS Implementation Specification. Copyright Open GIS Consortium, Inc. Reference: OGC 02-023r4. 548 pages. [cache]

• OpenGIS Geography Markup Language (GML) Implementation Specification. Version 2.1.2. 17-September-2002. 66 pages. OpenGIS Project Document Number 02-069. Also in PDF format. [cache]

• Galdos Inc. Galdos is a "recognized leader in the development of the Geography Markup Language (GML), which is quickly becoming the world standard for delivery of geographic information over the World Wide Web..."

• GML4J. A Java API for facilitating work with Geography Markup Language. See the SourceForge project.

• Benefits of GML

• GML FAQ document

• "Location-based Services and GML: Laying the Geo-spatial Web Foundations." Galdos white paper. March 15, 2001. [cache]

• Metadata DTD 'CD19115.3_XML.dtd'. ISO CD 19115.3 XML DTD Refinement Statement of Work.

• GML 2.0: Enabling the Geo-spatial Web using GML." Galdos white paper. March 14, 2001. [cache]

• OpenLS Implementation Specification

  • Announcement 2003-04-21: "OGC Releases Request for Comment for Proposed Location Services Specification."
  • OpenGISR Location Services (OpenLS): Core Services. Edited by Marwa Mabrouk (ESRI). April 19, 2003. Version 0.5.0. Reference: OGC 03-006r1. 165 pages.
  • OpenGIS Location Services (OpenLS): Part 6 - Navigation Service. April 19, 2003. Version 0.5.0. Reference: OGC 03-007r1. Edited by Tom Bychowski (NavTech). 50 pages.
  • OpenLS XML Schemas [cache]

General References: News, Papers, Articles

• [June 30, 2008] Public Comment Invited on OpenGIS Web Coverage Service Extensions. Announcement June 30, 2008. The Open Geospatial Consortium, Inc. (OGC) membership approved a 30-day public comment period for a revision to the OpenGIS Web Coverage Service (WCS) Interface Standard. The revision includes two extensions to WCS: the WCS 1.1 Transaction Extension and the Web Coverage Processing Service Processing (WCPS) Extension. The WCS Interface Standard specifies an application programming interface (API) for requesting coverage data, such as imagery, from one or more distributed sources. A WCS provides access to potentially detailed and rich sets of geospatial information, in forms that are useful for client-side rendering and input into scientific models and other clients. A WCS provides access to potentially detailed and rich sets of geospatial information, in forms that are useful for client-side rendering, multi-valued coverages, and input into scientific models and other clients. The WCS may be compared to the OGC Web Map Service (WMS) and the Web Feature Service (WFS); like them it allows clients to choose portions of a server's information holdings based on spatial constraints and other criteria. The WCS 1.1 Transaction Extension defines how WCS clients can request that a WCS server import one or more new coverages into that server, update existing coverages, and/or delete existing coverages. The WCPS Extension adds a raster expression language to WCS which allows analysis and processing of multi-dimensional grid coverage data over the World Wide Web. Resulting coverages can be transmitted directly or made available for download by URLs communicated to the client.

• [June 25, 2008] "OGC Seeks Input on Next Version of Geography Markup Language (GML)." — "The Open Geospatial Consortium, Inc. (OGC) is inviting the public to offer change requests for consideration by the OGC Technical Committee on a revision of the OpenGIS Geography Markup Language (GML) Encoding Standard. GML defines a data encoding in XML for geographic data and a grammar to express models of such data using XML Schema. GML has come into wide use since it was first adopted as an OGC standard in 2002. Implementations typically specify GML application schemas. GML is consistent with the OGC's entire open geospatial standards platform. GML is the standard that enables information communities and other standards organizations such as the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) and OASIS to insert geospatial components into their standards and be confident that their standards will be compatible with mainstream information infrastructure methods of conveying spatial/temporal information. The current version of GML was approved last year and is also published as ISO 19136:2007 by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO). The OGC Technical Committee is reviewing the need for changes in the standard and wants to receive suggestions from the wider community. Change requests should be submitted by September 19, 2008..." See also the GML Version 3.2.1 overview.

• [June 19, 2008] "OGC and buildingSMART Alliance AECOO Testbed Off to a Good Start." By Louis Hecht. From the OGC Newsletter. June 2008. "Effective and efficient design, construction, ownership, management and use of buildings and other capital facilities increasingly requires information exchange among all disciplines and professions that have a stake in those facilities. Like other industries, the AECOO (Architecture, Engineering, Construction, Owner and Operator) industry has embarked on "business transformation" enabled by the latest information and communication technologies. Last year, the OGC and buildingSMART International signed an MOU to work together in addressing issues of geospatial and AEC information convergence. OGC also completed a similar agreement with the National Institute of Building Sciences. On May 2, 2008 a Request for Quotation (RFQ) and Call for Participation (CFP) for the AECOO-Phase 1 Testbed were issued by the buildingSMART alliance, the Open Geospatial Consortium, Inc. (OGC) and the Testbed's sponsors. The testbed is designed to support business transformation as defined in the US National Building Information Modeling Standard (NBIMS) by applying technology for interoperability involving intelligent building models with 3D geometric capabilities. Eleven responses from 24 companies were received by the May 30, 2008 deadline from organizations and individuals with expertise in the building information management field. A number of those who responded will be selected by the sponsors for cost sharing in the testbed, and all relevant-in-scope responses will be able to participate. The AECOO Testbed directly addresses several key interoperability issues defined as important to the industry. Business and communications, quantity take-off for cost estimating, and energy analysis in planning and design for a capital facility are the topics selected by the sponsors. Additionally, OGC members will benefit from testbed use cases that address detailed modeling, analysis and visualization related to safety, security, urban planning, logistics and transport, etc. RFQ Annex A (Management and Business Overview; Work Breakdown Structure and Work Items) and Annex B (Testbed Architecture) reference several baseline XML standards relevant to the Testbed. See: (1) the earlier citation and (2) the RFP.

• [May 01, 2008] "NOAA Integrated Ocean Observing System (IOOS) Implements OGC Standards." Open Geospatial Consortium Staff. Corporate Announcement (May 01, 2008). The Open Geospatial Consortium, Inc. (OGC) announced that the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) program Integrated Ocean Observing System (IOOS) is implementing a number of OGC standards. The Integrated Ocean Observing System (IOOS) is a multidisciplinary system designed to enhance our ability to collect, deliver, and use ocean information. The goal is to provide continuous data on our open oceans, coastal waters, and Great Lakes in the formats, rates, and scales required by scientists, managers, businesses, governments, and the public to support research and inform decision-making. NOAA will begin the effort by establishing interoperable access to online databases maintained by the National Weather Service (NWS) National Data Buoy Center (NDBC), the National Ocean Service (NOS) Center for Operational Oceanographic Products and Services (CO-OPS) and the National Environmental Satellite Data Information Service (NESDIS) CoastWatch Program. This will be accomplished using web service interface and encoding standards developed by the OGC. The standards being used are part of OGC's Sensor Web Enablement (SWE) suite of specifications, which enable diverse network-connected sensors and sensor systems to be queried and controlled by remote users. For IOOS, NOAA data providers will implement OGC's Sensor Observation Service, Geography Markup Language (GML) and Observations and Measurements (O&M) specifications to provide data on temperature, salinity, water level, currents, winds and waves. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, an agency of the U.S. Commerce Department, is dedicated to enhancing economic security and national safety through the prediction and research of weather and climate-related events and information service delivery for transportation, and by providing environmental stewardship of our nation's coastal and marine resources. Through the emerging Global Earth Observation System of Systems (GEOSS), NOAA is working with its federal partners, more than 70 countries and the European Commission to develop a global monitoring network that is as integrated as the planet it observes, predicts and protects. See also the NOAA announcement.

• [April 9, 2008] "OGC Adopts ebRIM Application Profile for Catalogues." Open Geospatial Consortium Staff. Corporate Announcement. April 9, 2008. The Open Geospatial Consortium announced that its membership has approved the OASIS ebRIM (Electronic Business Registry Information Model) application profile of the OpenGIS Catalogue Service 2.1.2 standard. The Catalogue Standard specifies a design pattern that allows for the definition of interfaces called application profiles based on different standards, such as ZF39.50, ebRIM, UDDI, or ISO metadata, that support the ability to publish and search collections of descriptive information (metadata) about geospatial data, services and related information objects. The ebRIM application profile was developed and adopted because it enables catalogs to handle services as well a variety of other geospatial resource types such as symbol libraries, coordinate reference systems, application profiles, and application schemas and geospatial metadata. The OGC is an international industry consortium of more than 345 companies, government agencies, research organizations, and universities participating in a consensus process to develop publicly available interface specifications. OpenGIS Specifications support interoperable solutions that geo-enable the Web, wireless and location-based services, and mainstream IT. The specifications empower technology developers to make complex spatial information and services accessible and useful with all kinds of applications. See the OpenGIS Catalogue Service Implementation Specifications and OASIS REGREP.

• [April 01, 2008] "Ocean Scientists Embrace OGC Standards." By Mark Reichardt. OGC President's Message. March 2008. "The Earth's largest ecosystem, the ocean, is studied by specialists from a range of scientific disciplines. Despite the ocean's apparent vastness, human activities have had a profound effect on ocean systems, and in turn changes in the ocean system have comparably profound effects on the weather and climate. The ocean system indirectly determines human impacts from a growing list of societal activities — land development, agriculture, coastal development, sewage outflow, energy production and fishing, to name a few... The ocean science community is advancing a significant body of work to understand and address ocean-related issues. Their findings are important in efforts to strike a balance between protection of ocean systems and human exploitation of ocean resources. Given the magnitude and complexity of the issues, ocean research programs have much to gain by improving their ability to share ocean data, which almost always has spatial context. Not surprisingly, the oceans research community is aggressively implementing and using OGC standards to improve organizational, regional and global capabilities to access, process, integrate and apply ocean information, including real time sensor data. [This article provides a] partial list of ocean science programs and projects using OGC standards. Almost all of these efforts involve multiple government agencies, universities and research centers, and many of these programs and projects are working together... A major international program, known as the Global Earth Observing System of Systems (GEOSS), is being advanced by the Group on Earth Observations (GEO). Ocean observing and prediction is a major component of GEOSS. The OGC has contributed to GEOSS objectives through its involvement as a participating organization in GEO, through a series of GEOSS demonstrations conducted in partnership with IEEE Geoscience and Remote Sensing and ISPRS, and through the recent GEOSS Architecture Implementation Pilot, which has brought together technical contributions from over 120 organizations. The "GEOSS Report on Progress 2007" noted that the development of interoperability in the GEOSS was ahead of schedule. The work of OGC alliance partners is also important in addressing the interoperability needs of the ocean science community. The OASIS Common Alert Protocol (CAP) standard, for example, has elements that are harmonized with OGC standards, and CAP is growing in importance for issuing warning messages in emergency situations.

• [March 12, 2008] "Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC) and OASIS Collaborate on Standards." Joint OGC/OASIS Announcement. March 12, 2008. Progress on ongoing collaborative efforts was announced today by two international standards consortia, the Open Geospatial Consortium, Inc. (OGC) and OASIS (the Organization for the Advancement of Structured Information Standards). The groups have fostered an active commitment to cooperation since signing a Memorandum of Agreement in 2006. The two groups cite collaborative contributions and adoption of standards for web services, emergency management, e-business, and security. The groups point to Web services as a key area of their cooperation. With the existing OGC Web Services (OWS) standards, most of the standards needed to publish, discover and use Web-resident geospatial data and services on the Web are in place. However, OWS must work in concert with other Web services standards. That's why OGC members approved the ebRIM (electronic business Registry Information Model) OASIS Standard as the preferred cataloging meta-model foundation for future application profiles of the OpenGIS Catalog Service Web (CS-W) Standard. In the security space, the recently approved OGC GeoXACML standard represents a spatial extension of the XACML (Extensible Access Control Markup Language) OASIS Standard. GeoXACML was developed in close collaboration with the OASIS XACML Technical Committee. OGC also plays an active role in the OASIS Emergency Management Technical Committee, which works to advance the fields of incident and emergency preparedness and response. This committee developed the Common Alerting Protocol (CAP) and Emergency Data Exchange Language (EDXL) OASIS Standards. OGC members helped define a GML application very similar to GeoRSS GML for use in CAP and EDXL, as well as in other specifications under development including the Extensible Address Language (xAL), and Hospital Availability Exchange (HAVE). The OGC's Sensor Web Enablement (SWE) standards reference CAP and other relevant OASIS alerting standards including the OASIS Web Services Notification (WS-N) and Asynchronous Service Access Protocol (ASAP) specifications. The OGC works with OASIS to harmonize these standards with the SWE specifications.

• [February 22, 2008] "OpenGIS Web Processing Service (WPS) Interface Standard Version 1.0." Open Geospatial Consortium Staff. Corporate Announcement. February 22, 2008. OGC announced that members of the Open Geospatial Consortium have approved version 1.0 of the OpenGIS Web Processing Service (WPS) Interface Standard. The WPS standard defines an interface that facilitates the publishing of geospatial processes and makes it easier to write software clients that can discover and bind to those processes. Processes include any algorithm, calculation or model that operates on spatially referenced raster or vector data. Publishing means making available machine-readable binding information as well as human-readable metadata that allows service discovery and use. A WPS can be used to define calculations as simple as subtracting one set of spatially referenced data from another (e.g., determining the difference in influenza cases between two different seasons), or as complicated as a hydrological model. The data required by the WPS can be delivered across a network or it can be made available at the server. This interface specification provides mechanisms to identify the spatially referenced data required by the calculation, initiate the calculation, and manage the output from the calculation so that the client can access it. The OGC's WPS standard will play an important role in automating workflows that involve geospatial data and geoprocessing services. The specification identifies a generic mechanism to describe the data inputs required and produced by a process. This data can be delivered across the network, or available at the server. This data can include image data formats such as GeoTIFF, or data exchange standards such as Geography Markup Language (GML). Data inputs can be legitimate calls to OGC web services. For example, a data input for an intersection operation could be a polygon delivered in response to a WFS request, in which case the WPS data input would be the WFS query string."

• [January 31, 2008] "OGC Approves Sensor Web Observations and Measurements Encoding Standard." — The Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC) announced that its members have approved version 1.0 of the Observations and Measurements Encoding specification as a final OpenGIS Implementation Standard. The two-part Observations and Measurements Encoding specification "defines an abstract model and an XML schema encoding for observations and measurements. This framework is required for use by other OGC Sensor Web Enablement (SWE) standards as well as for general support for OGC compliant systems dealing in technical measurements in science and engineering. As a new international consensus standard in an era of increasing scientific cooperation, O&M promises to play an important role in Web-based publishing of real-time and archived scientific data across research disciplines and application domains." An "Observation" is an action with a result which has a value describing some phenomenon. The observation is modelled as a Feature within the context of the General Feature Model. An observation feature binds a result to a feature of interest, upon which the observation was made. The aim of the OpenGIS O&M Standard is to "define terms used for measurements and the relationships between them, mainly to improve the ability of software systems to discover and use live and archived digital data produced by measuring systems. When scientists and engineers encode data in O&M, they can easily publish the data (or live data feeds) in catalogs and registries so others can efficiently discover, access and use the data, using relatively simple software. The scope of the specification covers observations and measurements whose results may be quantities, categories, temporal and geometry values, coverages, and composites and arrays of any of these."

• [December 4, 2007] "OGC Seeks Comment on OGC Candidate KML 2.2 Standard." Open Geospatial Consortium Staff. Corporate Announcement. December 4, 2007. The Open Geospatial Consortium, Inc. announced a call for public comment on a draft OpenGIS Encoding Standard (OGC KML) for KML 2.2, a XML-based encoding schema for expressing geographic annotation and visualization on existing or future web-based online maps (2D) and Earth browsers (3D). The draft OGC KML 2.2 standard formalizes the KML 2.2 model and language while remaining backwards compatible with existing KML 2.2 files. In comparison with the Google KML 2.2 Reference, the draft standard defines: (1) the KML 2.2 geometry encoding and interpolation model; (2) an extension model in support of application profiles; (3) conformance requirements and test cases. The submission of KML into the OGC consensus process by the RFC Submission team led by Google and Galdos Systems Inc. ensures that KML will be aligned with international best practices and standards, thereby enabling greater uptake and interoperability of Earth browser implementations. The public comment period will remain open until January 4, 2008. See also the text of KML 2.2.

• [November 26, 2007] "KML 2.2: An OGC Best Practice." Edited by Tim Wilson. Approved OGC Best Practice Document. September 14, 2007. The Open Geospatial Consortium recently announced the approval of KML 2.2: An OGC Best Practice (reference: OGC 07-113r1) as an official OGC Best Practice document. "Google submitted KML (formerly Keyhole Markup Language) to the Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC) to be evolved within the OGC consensus process with the following goal: KML Version 2.2 will be an adopted OGC implementation standard. Future versions may be harmonized with relevant OpenGIS standards that comprise the OGC standards baseline. There are four objectives for this standards work: (1) That there be one international standard language for expressing geographic annotation and visualization on existing or future web-based online and mobile maps (2D) and earth 3D browsers; (2) That KML be aligned with international best practices and standards, thereby enabling greater uptake and interoperability of earth browser implementations; (3) That the OGC and Google will work collaboratively to insure that the KML implementer community is properly engaged in the process and that the KML community is kept informed of progress and issues; (4) That the OGC process will be used to insure proper life-cycle management of the KML candidate standard, including such issues as backwards compatibility. KML is an XML language focused on geographic visualization, including annotation of maps and images. Geographic visualization includes not only the presentation of graphical data on the globe, but also the control of the user's navigation in the sense of where to go and where to look. KML is [thus] complementary to most of the key existing OGC standards including GML (Geography Markup Language), WFS (Web Feature Service) and WMS (Web Map Service). Currently, KML (2.2) utilizes certain geometry elements derived from GML version 2.1.2. These elements include point, line string, linear ring, and polygon." See also OGC Best Practices Documents.

• [October 29, 2007] "Microsoft Joins the Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC)." By Patrick Marshall. FromGovernment Computer News (October 29, 2007). In a move that is bound to have lasting repercussions for geospatial application developers, Microsoft has formally joined the Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC), a nonprofit standards organization. The move underlines Microsoft's commitment to make its geospatial applications — including Microsoft Virtual Earth and SQL Server 2008 — conform to open standards, which will make it easier for third-party developers to integrate their own applications more effectively. According to Ed Katibah, Microsoft's spatial program manager for SQL Server, SQL Server 2008, which introduces spatial data types and methods, was designed to conform to OGC standards. The new version of the database, which is expected to be released in the second quarter of 2008, will undergo testing in the next few weeks to ensure its conformity. OGC Chairman and Chief Executive Officer David Schell said that Microsoft's decision to join OGC represents a major change in the industry. In its early years, OGC was supported primarily by developers of geospatial tools for vertical markets, such as ESRI and Autodesk. The recent addition of Google and now Microsoft represents a sea change, according to Schell. Schell expects Microsoft's participation to serve as a stabilizing force. As developers build new applications they can be assured that, by following OGC standards, their efforts will not meet with immediate obsolescence as a result of some major company introducing a new standard that suddenly changes everything. Schell: "The center of gravity of the market is now shifting; this really does indicate a significant maturation in the industry. It indicates a very broad acceptance of geospatial information as part of infrastructure development. And it also indicates that the dialogue concerning the harmonization of spatial best practices has reached the highest level." OGC is an international industry consortium of 346 companies, government agencies and universities participating in a consensus process to develop publicly available interface specifications. OpenGIS Specifications support interoperable solutions that "geo-enable" the Web, wireless and location-based services, and mainstream IT.

• [September 7, 2007] "OWS-5 Initiative Agile Geography: Federated Geo-synchronization Services." Open Geospatial Consortium Staff. Corporate Announcement (). The Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC) has published an update for the Request for Quotes/Call for Participation (RFQ/CFP) for the OGC Web Services, Phase 5 (OWS-5) Interoperability Initiative. OWS-5 is a testbed to advance OGC's open geospatial interoperability framework. It is intended to advance standards for geospatial workflow, sensor webs, geospatial digital rights management, GML information communities, and KML. The OWS-5 Agile Geography testbed focuses on process integration and "right-sizing" of services to demonstrate the power of interoperability and service-oriented architectures using OGC Web Services. Agile Geography thread explores this goal through two distinct activities. The first explores the future of KML, OWS Context, and lightweight payloads of geospatial information on the Web in general, applying the concepts of links, bookmarks and Web pages to digital cartography and geospatial information management. The second activity "GeoSynchronization and Sharing" extends the WFS-Transactional architecture to target a federated environment comprised of loosely affiliated parties who desire to collaborate, in full or in part, on the maintenance of a shared geospatial data set. As described in the addendum, in response to sponsor requirements, the OWS-5 initiative's Agile Geography thread has been expanded to include two new work items. The two new work items are titled "Federated Geo-synchronization Services" and "OWS Core + Extensions Experiment". In the Federated Geo-synchronization work, participants will help develop standard approaches to using GML application schemas such as GeoRSS GML and GML Simple Features Level 0 with Atom and the Atom Publishing Protocol. Atom addresses the syndication of Web content such as weblogs and news headlines to Web sites as well as directly to user agents. The "OWS Core + Extensions Experiment" work item involves participants implementing a more formal and modular approach to structuring OGC standards. OWS testbeds are part of OGC's Interoperability Program, a global, hands-on and collaborative prototyping program designed to rapidly develop, test and deliver proven candidate specifications into OGC's Specification Program, where they are formalized for public release. In OGC's Interoperability Initiatives, international teams of technology providers work together to solve specific geoprocessing interoperability problems posed by the Initiative's sponsoring organizations.

• [August 27, 2007] "OGC Releases Discussion Paper on Water Markup Language (WaterML)." Edited by Ilya Zaslavsky, David Valentine, and Tim Whitea. OGC Discussion Paper. OGC has published a "CUAHSI WaterML" (OGC 07-041r1) as a Discussion Paper on the Water Markup Language. The document was produced as part of the NSF-supported CUAHSI (Consortium of Universities for the Advancement of Hydrologic Science) HIS (Hydrologic Information System Project), and describes the initial version of the WaterML schema in the context of the WaterOneFlow services implementation. CUAHSI is in discussions with OGC about further standardization of the schema and the service signatures, and aligning them with OGC specifications. CUAHSI web services facilitate the retrieval of hydrologic observations information from online data sources using the SOAP protocol. The CUAHSI WaterML document describes the initial version of the WaterML messaging schema as implemented in version 1.0 of WaterOneFlow web services. It also lays out strategies for harmonizing WaterML with OGC specifications, the Observations and Measurement specification in particular. The CUAHSI Water Markup Language (WaterML) is an XML schema defining the elements that are designed for WaterOneFlow messaging, in support of the transfer of water data between a server and a client. WaterML generally follows the information model of ODM (Observation Data Model). One aspect of this is a data model for the storage and retrieval of hydrologic observations in a relational database. The purpose for such a database is to store hydrologic observations data in a system designed to optimize data retrieval for integrated analysis of information collected by multiple investigators. It is intended to provide a standard format to aid in the effective sharing of information between investigators and to allow analysis of information from disparate sources both within a single study area or hydrologic observatory and across hydrologic observatories and regions. The WaterML schema is [available online] . The goal of the first version of WaterML was to encode the semantics of hydrologic observations discovery and retrieval and implement WaterOneFlow services in a way that creates the least barriers for adoption by the hydrologic research community. The University of Texas at Austin (UT-Austin) and The San Diego Supercomputer Center (SDSC) submitted this Implementation Specification to the Open Geospatial Consortium Inc. as a Request For Comment (RFC). In future versions of this specification, the developers intend to harmonize WaterML and WaterOneFlow with relevant OGC specifications. WaterML is most closely related to Observations and Measurements, and might be re-cast as a formal profile of O&M. WaterOneFlow is related to WCS/SOS/SAS and both might be interpreted as implementations of some conceptual observation service. See also the Hydrologic Developement Server.

• [August 2007] "GML: The Key Enabler." By Sam Bacharach. From Geospatial Today (July 2007). In this article, Sam Bacharach provides a look at the history and status of the OpenGIS Geography Markup Language (GML). Geographic Markup Language (GML) or more formally XML grammar is the basic encoding system of the web that facilitates a standard way of encoding geospatial information on the web. Developed by the Open Geospatial Consortium, GML is an important standard and has emerged as a key enabler of spatial data infrastructures (SDIs), helping stakeholders in various information communities overcome both technical and institutional obstacles in sharing data. The concept of "National Spatial Data Infrastructure" (NSDI) has been widely adopted by nations around the world, but there are also enterprise SDIs, municipal SDIs, regional SDIs (for multi-city or multi-nation regions), application domain SDIs and the Global SDI (GSDI). The World Wide Web has provided a critical foundation for SDI development. The importance of the Web became obvious to members of the OGC in the late 1990s. The emergence at that time of XML as the basic information encoding system of the Web provided an opportunity to create a standard way of encoding geospatial information on the Web. This standard was developed in the OGC and it is called the OpenGIS Geography Markup Language (GML). GML is an important part of many other OGC standards. GML is a "namespace," or more formally, an 'XML grammar.' Namespaces are identified on the Web via a URL — in this case: http://www.opengis.net/gml — and thus, they are globally accessible. They are a mechanism to prevent naming conflicts, that is to say, to prevent non-interoperability, in Web applications. The current version, GML 3.1.1, is heavily used and users have created dozens of application schemas (domain-specific GML schemas) and several GML profiles, which are agreed-upon GML subsets. All the major GIS vendors provide GML support and many have made GML an integral part of their offerings. The OGC and ISO TC/211 have worked closely together on GML. GML 3.2.1 is up for a vote in the OGC and it has been approved by TC/211 and sent to ISO Central Secretariat for publication.

• [August 15, 2007] "OGC Announces Styled Layer Descriptor and Symbol Encoding Specifications." Open Geospatial Consortium Staff. Corporate Announcement. August 15, 2007. Members of the Open Geospatial Consortium, Inc. (OGC) have approved the "OpenGIS Styled Layer Descriptor (SLD) Implementation Specification," designed as a profile of the Web Map Service. Concurrently, OGC has released the related "OpenGIS Symbology Encoding Implementation Specification." The OpenGIS Styled Layer Descriptor (SLD) profile of the Web Map Service Implementation Specification defines an encoding that extends the Web Map Service specification to allow user-defined symbolization of feature and coverage data. It allows users to determine which features or layers are rendered with which colors or symbols. SLD addresses the important need for users and software to be able to control the visual portrayal of the geospatial data. The ability to define styling rules requires a styling language that the client and server can both understand. Symbology Encoding provides this language, while the SLD profile of WMS enables application of Symbology Encoding to WMS layers using extensions of WMS operations. Additionally, SLD defines an operation for standardized access to legend symbols. The OpenGIS Symbology Encoding Implementation Specification defines Symbology Encoding, an XML language for styling information that can be applied to digital Feature and Coverage data.

• [August 10, 2007] "OGC Releases Transducer Markup Language (TML) Implementation Specification." By Robin Cover. Cover Pages News Story. An announcement from The Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC) describes the publication of the "OpenGIS Transducer Markup Language (TML) Implementation Specification" as an approved OpenGIS Publicly Available Standard. Sensor systems "have two basic parts: a sensing element and a transducer that converts energy from one form to another form (usually an electric signal) that can be interpreted. The OGC TML specification defines the conceptual model and XML Schema for describing transducers and supporting real-time streaming of data to and from sensor systems. TML thus defines (a) a set of models describing the response characteristics of a transducer, and (b) an efficient method for transporting sensor data and preparing it for use with other data through spatial and temporal associations." TML response models "are formalized XML descriptions of known hardware behaviors. The models can be used to reverse distorting effects and return artifact values to the phenomena realm. TML provides models for a transducer's latency and integration times, noise figure, spatial and temporal geometries, frequency response, steady-state response and impulse response. Traditional XML wraps each data element in a semantically meaningful tag. The rich semantic capability of XML is in general better suited to data exchange rather than live delivery where variable bandwidth is a factor. TML addresses the live scenario by using a terse XML envelope designed for efficient transport of live sensor data in groupings known as TML clusters. It also provides a mechanism for temporal correlation to other transducer data." The TML Implementation Specification has been produced as part of the OGC Sensor Web Enablement activity. In this effort, OGC members are "specifying interoperability interfaces and metadata encodings that enable real time integration of heterogeneous sensor webs into the information infrastructure. Developers will use these specifications in creating applications, platforms, and products involving Web-connected devices such as flood gauges, air pollution monitors, stress gauges on bridges, mobile heart monitors, Webcams, and robots as well as space and airborne earth imaging devices."

• [June 26, 2007] "OGC Demonstration Features CityGML, IFCs, and GML." Open Geospatial Consortium Staff. Corporate Announcement. June 26, 2007. On March 13, 2007 the National Institute of Building Sciences (NIBS) Facility Information Council released the first version of the National Building Information Modeling Standard (NBIMS) for a two month industry review period. The Open Geospatial Consortium, Inc. (OGC) has been helping to promote this standard through interoperable web services using NBIMS and helping to ensure compatibility with the geospatial industry's consensus based open standards for urban modeling. The OGC Web Services test bed (OWS-4) demonstration showed how interoperability is possible among 3D geospatial models, CityGML and Industry Foundation Classes (IFCs). CityGML applies the OGC's Geography Markup Language (GML) for encoding urban environments. IFCs are an International Alliance for Interoperability (IAI) International standard and a common component of Building Information Models. High level decision makers involved in disaster management saw a live enactment of a fictional scenario in which a "dirty bomb" explodes at a wharf, causing injuries and releasing a plume of dangerous radioactivity. The OGC Web Services test bed demonstration used a variety of Web-based geospatial information systems to show evacuation management, find a building suitable to contain an emergency decontamination and hospital unit, and track victims. The geospatial and CAD technologies used at the demo event were mainly commercial off-the-shelf systems employing the OGC's open specifications for geospatial interfaces and encodings. In the scenario, a temporary hospital and decontamination site had to be found near the event but not in the path of the radioactive plume. Building information models (BIM) were available for the area. The BIM encoding used IFCs. Visual inspection and review of the integrated IFC, CAD, and GIS data showed that one building in particular was well suited to meet the special emergency hospital requirements. Thus, the search took less than an hour, and preparation of the site and transportation of patients could begin immediately.

• [June 26, 2007] "Open Geospatial Consortium Announces New Automated Compliance Tests." By OGC Staff. Corporate Announcement. June 26, 2007. The Open Geospatial Consortium, Inc. (OGC) membership has adopted new test suites, test scripts and reference implementations for OpenGIS Specifications. A new TEAM Engine (Test, Evaluation, and Measurement Engine) and Compliance Test Language were adopted as the OGC's official new compliance testing platform. These new free tests and testing software enable technology providers to confirm that their products are compliant with OpenGIS standards. Providers can then submit products for certification. Certified products can carry the OGC 'Certified Compliant' mark to formally signify adherence to OGC standards. Test suites were adopted for the following OpenGIS implementation specifications: (1) Web Map Service (WMS) 1.3.0; (2) Web Feature Service (WFS) with Filter Encoding 1.1.0; (3) Geography Markup Language (GML) Simple Features SF 1.0; (4) Catalog Services - Web (CS/W) 2.0.1; (5) Web Map Context (WMC) 1.1.0; (6) GeoRSS GML. To assist programmers in developing solutions, open source reference implementations were adopted for: WMS 1.3.0, CS/W 2.0.1, and WFS 1.1.0. Developers can download the TEAM Engine to test their implementations of the OGC's OpenGIS implementation specifications in the developers' own environments. The TEAM Engine, an open source program developed by Northrop Grumman, and the test suites and reference implementations, contributed by other OGC members, were among the results of the OGC's fourth OGC Web Services test bed activity (OWS-4).

• [June 13, 2007] "OGC Moves Google's KML Closer to a Standard." By Patrick Marshall. From Government Computer News (June 13, 2007). The Open Geospatial Consortium has dubbed Google's Keyhole Markup Language (KML) — the language used for developing Google Earth — a best practice. OGC is working with Google and other OGC members, including ESRI and Autodesk, to make sure KML integrates well with such other standards as the Geographic Markup Language (GML). Microsoft — which is continuing development of its Web-based mapping product, Microsoft Virtual Earth — is not currently an OGC member, though it is expected to join soon. Google offered KML 2.1 to the consortium last April [2006] and is working closely with OGC in further development of the language. An OGC official said the main advantages of making KML a standard are that it speeds development of Web-based mapping applications, encourages greater interoperability of products and ensures easier movement of data between applications. OGC expects KML 3.0 to be released as a standard early next year...

• [May 30, 2007] "OGC in Biodiversity Science and Education." By Mark Reichardt. From OGC Newsletter President's Message. May 2007. "For more than a decade, leading biologists and scientific organizations have stated that if present trends continue, it is highly likely that as a result of habitat destruction, pollution, invasive species, and climate change, half of all species of life on earth will be extinct in less than 100 years. If we are to avoid this ecological disaster, a critical requirement is that scientists, researchers and policy makers have good information about these trends and about the habitats and distributions of the world's millions of species of plants and animals. Not surprisingly, almost all of this information has a geospatial context. An organization called Biodiversity Information Standards (TDWG) and the OGC recently signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to work together. Biodiversity Information Standards is a scientific and educational association focused on development of standards for the exchange of biological and biodiversity data. The organization's Geospatial Interest Group (GIG) works to facilitate adoption and integration of standards, specifications, best practices, and technology between the biological and geospatial communities. The GIG will work closely with the OGC's Earth Observation, Natural Resources and Environment Working Group to share standards documentation, develop profiles and schema based on OGC standards, pursue joint interoperability initiatives, and participate in joint outreach activities. This collaboration will benefit from two ongoing OGC initiatives — an OGC Architecture Implementation Pilot and the OGC Trilateral Agreement Pilot. These are being led by collaborating European, Canadian and US agencies, as well as the Group on Earth Observations (GEO), to advance a standards-based architecture based on OGC specifications..." See also the OASIS/IUCN Workshop.

• [May 21, 2007] "OGC Announces Public Review for GeoXACML and OpenGIS Image Geopositioning Service (IGS) Draft Specifications." By Robin Cover. Cover Pages News Story. The Open Geospatial Consortium announced a call for public comment on two draft OpenGIS Implementation Specifications: GeoXACML and OpenGIS Image Geopositioning Service (IGS). The draft Geospatial Extensible Access Control Markup Language (GeoXACML) Implementation Specification defines a geo-specific extension to the Extensible Access Control Markup Language (XACML) OASIS Standard. The OGC GeoXACML draft clarifies that access control systems enable management of access to information only until it is obtained by the user and stored locally, as opposed to rights management systems that remain in force regardless of where the content of the original resource is located or reproduced. The second OGC draft released for public comment is the OpenGIS Image Geopositioning Service (IGS) Draft Implementation Specification. This document defines an Image Geopositioning Service (IGS) interface to services that perform triangulation. Accompanying the IGS draft specification is a separate OpenGIS Image Geopositioning Metadata Geography Markup Language (GML) Draft Application Schema, which is structured to provide consistency between the IGS and other OGC Web Services (OWS) specifications. OGC also recently published KML 2.1 Reference — An OGC Best Practice. KML is a file format used to display geographic data in an Earth browser, such as Google Earth, Google Maps, and Google Maps for Mobile. KML uses a tag-based structure with nested elements and attributes and is based on the XML standard.

• [May 11, 2007] "OGC Announces Web Services Phase 5 Interoperability Initiative." Open Geospatial Consortium Staff. Corporate Announcement. May 11, 2007. The Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC) has issued a Request for Quotes/Call for Participation (RFQ/CFP) for the OGC Web Services, Phase 5 (OWS-5) Interoperability Initiative, a testbed to advance OGC's open geospatial interoperability framework. Based on sponsor requirements, the OWS-5 initiative is organized as six threads over two initiative phases: (1) Sensor Web Enablement (SWE), (2) Geo Processing Workflow (GPW), (3) Information Communities' Semantics (ICS), (4) Agile Geography, (5) Compliance Testing (CITE), (6) CAD/GIS/BIM. Significant work items include geospatial Web service chaining and workflow, enhancements to the XML-based KML language, practical application of the Sensor Web, and application of GML to real-world scenarios. The Agile Geography testbed focuses on process integration and 'right-sizing' of services to demonstrate the power of interoperability and service-oriented architectures using OGC Web Services. The Agile Geography thread has two distinct activities. The first explores the future of KML, OWS Context, and lightweight payloads of geospatial information on the Web in general, applying the concepts of links, bookmarks and Web pages to digital cartography and geospatial information management. Participants will explore the harmonization of KML and OWS Context XML encodings and prototype client and server software that exploits these document types. The second activity-GeoSynchronization and Sharing-extends the WFS- Transactional architecture to target a federated environment. OWS testbeds are part of OGC's Interoperability Program, a global, hands-on and collaborative prototyping program designed to rapidly develop, test and deliver proven candidate specifications into OGC's Specification Program, where they are formalized for public release. In OGC's Interoperability Initiatives, international teams of technology providers work together to solve specific geoprocessing interoperability problems posed by the Initiative's sponsoring organizations.

• [April 16, 2007] "GCN Interview: David Schell, A New Worldview." By Patrick Marshall. From Government Computer News (April 16, 2007). David Schell founded the Open Geospatial Consortium in 1994. Since then, OGC has grown to encompass 341 member companies and organizations. That includes all the major geospatial developers, along with many government agencies and universities. GCN spoke with Schell to discuss the current state of geospatial standardization. Schell: "We invented a program called the Interoperability Program. In this program, we invited large organizations who had major requirements to state those requirements and to put up some resources to help stimulate a process to have those requirements looked at. OGC then issues an RFP to the community and asks the community to make proposals against these requirements. We usually get 40 to 50 responses from development organizations. They propose either working for some basic amount of resources to cover expenses, or they propose providing in-kind resources. They do this because they want to be involved in the development of an authentic solution that's going to be used just as soon as it is developed. The Interoperability Program has become a way that we are able to use user requirements — to drive the standards process. What's really nice about it is that everybody knows — it's a low-budget process. So the sponsors put up what they can. The developers provide in-kind participation. The result is that we very frequently get a one-to-three to a one-to-five return on investment. It's not just about standards and best practices. The result is really a collaborative community within the market... One of our great challenges right now is to harmonize the existing geospatial market, which comprises traditional powers like ESRI, Integraph and Autodesk as well as the new, dynamic, young companies like Ionic. And Google just joined the consortium. That's tremendously important for the industry because Google has really ensured that there is broad awareness for spatial information. The second great challenge is to get a lot more participation on the part of major industry players, including the auto industry, telecommunications and others. They all use and depend upon spatial information. Government agencies are all now lining up and adopting these standards, but many vendors are still stovepiped and haven't gotten involved in industrywide standards processes." See also OpenGIS Specifications.

• [February 20, 2007] "NGA GEOINT Standards Baseline Features OGC Specifications." OGC Staff. Corporate Announcement. February 20, 2007. The U.S. Department of Defense National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA) has issued a document, "Enabling A Common Vision", which outlines the overall National System for Geospatial-Intelligence (NSG) standards baseline. Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC) Specifications figure prominently in this U.S. Federal and national baseline. Shortly after September 11, 2001, the National Center for Geospatial Intelligence Standards (NCGIS) was formed by the NGA to develop and coordinate geospatial standards with other Department of Defense (DoD) agencies, other intelligence agencies, standards organizations, civil agencies, private industry, and foreign partners. These groups have worked with NCGIS to develop and mature a set of standards that enable data and service interoperability in the context of a service-oriented architecture (SOA). In the NGA report "Enabling A Common Vision," the NSG has endorsed a set of key specifications known collectively as the OGC Spatial Data Infrastructure (SDI) 1.0 baseline. These OGC standards include the OpenGIS Specifications for Web Feature Service (WFS), Geography Markup Language (GML), Web Map Service (WMS), Styled Layer Descriptor (SLD), Catalogue Services (CS-Web), and Filter Encoding Specification (FE). Other standards included are ISO 19115 Geographic Information — Metadata, and ISO 19119 Geographics Information — Services. The domestic civil community and the international community are implementing largely the same suite of common geospatial standards. This architecture is particularly valuable to the Homeland Security community, allowing it to share investments in geospatial data and knowledge related to critical infrastructure and natural environments with U.S. cities, counties and other organizations to support the prevention and mitigation of national disaster and security situations. See also the NGA report.

• [February 1, 2007] "OGC Invites Participation in Ocean Science Interoperability Experiment." Open Geospatial Consortium Staff. Corporate Announcement. February 1, 2007. In January 2007, the Open Geospatial Consortium Inc. (OGC) launched an Interoperability Experiment on Ocean Science. The initiators of the experiment seek participation by other organizations interested in interoperability among information systems used in ocean research. The Oceans Science Interoperability Experiment will promote understanding of various OGC Web Service (OWS) standards now implemented in various portal applications in the Ocean-Observing community, advance interoperability demonstrations for Ocean Science application areas, and harden software implementations. The final product of the experiment will be a candidate OGC Best Practices document for the broader ocean-observing community. The Best Practices document will show how to use OGC specifications in marine-specific applications to improve discovery, access and use of Web-accessible ocean science data and services. The OGC members acting as initiators of the Interoperability Experiment are: (1) Southeastern Universities Research Association (SURA); (2) Texas A&M University - Academy for Advanced Telecommunications (TAMU); (3) The National Centers for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) (Voting); (4) The Monterrey Bay Aquarium and Research Institute; (5) GoMOOS (Gulf of Maine Ocean Observing System. Organizations that wish to participate and that can meet the Requirements for Participation described in the Oceans Science Interoperability Experiment Activity Plan should notify the OGC before February 15, 2007 of their desire to participate.

• [January 2007] "CTO's Message: OGC Standards and the Geospatial Web." By Carl Reed. From the OGC Newsletter. January 2007. Location content is being created and utilized at many levels in the internet/web infrastructure. Much of this content is not being created by the GIS community! Consider DSRC: a short to medium range (1000 meters) communications service that supports both public safety and private operations in roadside-to-vehicle and vehicle-to-vehicle communication environments. DSRC is really about developing and deploying an extensive roadside sensor and communication network. This network will generate billions of location messages on a daily basis — and is being done entirely outside the traditional geospatial domain. And this application area will be an integral component of the Geospatial Web. The Geospatial Web has been evolving since the mid 1990's when the first mapping applications, such as MapQuest and Xerox ParcMap, were deployed. During the last few years, various applications, such as emergency services, spatial data infrastructures, and consumer mapping have accelerated the growth and evolution of the Geospatial Web. During this same time period, an increasing number of applications have implemented and use a variety of geospatial standards. Some of these standards are OGC standards but others are from the Open Mobile Alliance (OMA), from ISO, from the IEEE, or from the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF). The reason for this is that the Geospatial Web consists of many layers. The following is a somewhat simplistic view of the number of layers that define the geospatial web. Models for defining the layers of an IT infrastructure are typically 5 to 7 layers deep. OGC standards play an important role in all levels. This does not mean that the OGC is developing standards for all levels and all application areas. Instead, many other standards organizations, such as the IETF, IEEE, OMA, and OASIS are building on the work of the OGC to define profiles and application schemas for their specific requirements. Many of these profiles and schemas, such as those used in GeoRSS and IEEE 1451, are simple and lightweight. Each meets a specific requirement. The Geospatial Web is not just a bunch of mash-ups or even the hundreds of SDI's that have been successfully deployed. The Geospatial Web is about the complete integration and use of location at all levels of the internet and the web. This integration will often be invisible to the user. But at the end of the day, the ubiquitous permeation of location into the infrastructure of the internet and the web is being built on standards.

• [January 17, 2007] "Open Geospatial Consortium Joins W3C Geospatial Incubator Activity." Open Geospatial Consortium Staff. Corporte Announcement. January 17, 2007. The Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC) announced that it has taken a role in the World Wide Web Consortium, "a standards organization that develops interoperable technologies (specifications, guidelines, software, and tools) to lead the Web to its full potential." The OGC is participating in a W3C incubator activity focusing on semantic geospatial issues. W3C Incubator Activities facilitate rapid development, on a time scale of a year or less, of new Web-related concepts. The semantic geospatial activity or Geospatial XG is sponsored by W3C members OGC, SRI International, University of Southern California Information Sciences Institute (USC ISI), Stanford University and Oracle and is chaired by Traverse Technology's Joshua Lieberman. As an initial goal the Geospatial XG is working to develop a W3C "Note" based on GeoRSS version 1. This will result in a W3C Web page describing GeoRSS in the context of both W3C standards such as XML, HTML, and OWL; and OGC's relevant work, such as the OGC Abstract Specifications and Geography Markup Language (GML). The OGC and the W3C seek to collaboratively add geospatial functionality to the emerging Semantic Web in a manner that is consistent with existing and future OGC standards.. OGC standards are the product of a successful 12-year open, international, and consensus-driven effort to overcome obstacles to geospatial interoperability.

• [January 05, 2007] "OGC Announces Adoption of ebRIM Metamodel for Catalogues." Open Geospatial Consortium Staff. Corporate Announcement. The Open Geospatial Consortium, Inc. (OGC) announced that is has selected the OASIS standard ebRIM (Electronic business Registry Information Model) as the preferred cataloguing metamodel foundation for future application profiles of the OpenGIS Catalogue Service Web (CS-W) specification. The catalogue specification defines the information required to support discovery and search for data and services and ebRIM provides the requirements to support registration of services like those specified in many OGC standards, as well as geospatial data and other resources. The Consortium views search and discovery frameworks such as UDDI, registry capability such as ebRIM, and unstructured text searches to be competing for dominance in the Service Oriented Architectures marketplace. However, none of these three options completely satisfies the geospatial requirements defined by the members. ebRIM was selected as the preferred metamodel because it enables catalogs to handle services and a variety of other supporting registry requirements such as symbol libraries, coordinate reference systems, application profiles, and application schemas as well as geospatial data. "This decision is non-exclusive and allows continued development of other OGC Catalogue Specification application profiles. OGC Catalog was written to provide Web discovery of geospatial data and services and this decision provides direction in the combination of discovery with registry services to manage the data and enable machine to machine communication," according to Carl Reed, OGC Chief Technology Officer. "The addition of the registration process enabled by ebRIM does not deprecate the search and discovery services provided by the Z39.50 and CORBA protocol bindings and the ISO Metadata Application Profile." The OGC is an international industry consortium of more than 335 companies, government agencies, research organizations, and universities participating in a consensus process to develop publicly available interface specifications. See also ebXML Registry and Repository.

• [December 19, 2006] "OGC and Web3D Consortium Collaborate on Web-Based 3D Technologies." Open Geospatial Consortium Staff. Corporate Announcement. December 19, 2006. The Open Geospatial Consortium, Inc. (OGC) and the Web3D Consortium announced a new memorandum of understanding describing collaborative work to advance standards supporting web-based 3D visualization, modeling and simulation. Among the many benefits that will derive from this collaboration will be improved standards-based, location enabled 3D web services to support urban planning; architecture, engineering and construction; climate prediction, homeland security, emergency management, defense and intelligence, and other capabilities. Mark Reichardt, President of the OGC: The OGC membership, working with ISO TC/211 and other standards groups, has helped to make standards-based interoperable geospatial services a reality on the Web. This agreement will enable OGC and Web3D to work more cooperatively on the development and promotion of standards for improved application of web-based, location enabled 3D visualization, modeling and simulation". Alan Hudson, President of Web 3D, noted that "The OGC and the Web3D Consortium envision the synthesis of 2D maps with content-rich 3D immersive worlds. To that end, we believe the incorporation of interactive, internet based 3D graphics is the next logical step that will benefit users with a richer, more meaningful geospatial experience." OpenGIS Specifications support interoperable solutions that "geo-enable" the Web, location-based services, and mainstream IT. Web3D Consortium is utilizing its broad-based industry support to continue developing the X3D specification, for communicating 3D on the Web, between applications and across distributed networks and web services. Through well-coordinated efforts with the ISO and W3C, and now the OGC, the Web3D Consortium is maintaining and extending its standardization activities.

• [September 01, 2006] "Open Geospatial Consortium Approves Four Sensor Related Standards." By Sam Bacharach. OGC Announcement. September 01, 2006. The Open Geospatial Consortium recently announced that its membership has approved four standards that will allow sensors to better interoperate with the Web and other information technology assets. Common sensors found everyday include imaging cameras traveling on aircraft, "sniffers" that determine pollutions concentration in the air, "listeners" that keep track of noise and temperature sensors that ensure that produce traveling in trucks remains fresh. The OGC has been working for several years to find ways in which these and other sensors can publish information about their existence, report their locations and share their information in a standard way. Sensor Model Language (SensorML) Implementation Specification describes an information model and encodings that enable discovery and tasking of Web-resident sensors, and exploitation of sensor observations. SensorML allows scientists to find and communicate with sensors to assign specific jobs. SensorML is built on XML and can describe any process, including measurement by a sensor system, as well as post-measurement processing. The OpenGIS TransducerML (TML) Implementation Specification is a method and message format for describing information about sensors and actuators and capturing, exchanging, and archiving live, historical and future data received and produced by them. TML, also built on XML, provides a mechanism to efficiently and effectively capture, transport and archive transducer data, in a common form, regardless of the original source. The OpenGIS Sensor Observation Service (SOS) Implementation Specification provides access to observations from sensors and sensor systems in a standard way that is consistent for all sensor systems including remote, in-situ, fixed and mobile sensors. The OpenGIS Sensor Planning Service (SPS) Implementation Specification defines interfaces for requesting information describing the capabilities of a sensor to determine the feasibility of a sensor planning request.

• [September 2006] "GeoBliki." By Brady. From O'Reilly Radar Blog. At FOSS4G, Pat Cappelaere described a new Open Source project called GeoBliki. As you may guess from the name it's a blog-wiki application that is tailored towards geospatial collaboration. The project was inspired by some of the issues that came up around data sharing when Katrina struck. The goal is to provide first-responders immediate access to relevant geodata and a platform to collaborate on: A GeoBliki is an Open Source Ruby-on-Rails application that integrates many other open source components including Community MapBuilder and supports many of the OGC web services: WFS, SAS, WNS, SPS, WPS... A GeoBliki is a sensor-data node publisher. Data can be published in various forms, which can be made accessible to local or remote users for free or for a fee. Users can register to existing subscriptions around areas of interest and be notified via email/IM or GeoRSS feeds when new data, comments/annotations on the existing data become available. Typo (an RoR blogging tool) is being used to publish GeoRSS — part of the beauty of using an established blogging platform is that they can leverage the existing blog syndication ecosystem for notifying their users as data becomes available. Hieraki is providing the wiki functionality. WildFire, an XMPP server, is being used for notifications. The maps are being built with Community MapBuilder. RForum is being used to provide discussion forums - specifically around the quality of the data. The project is due out in 12/2006. It is being sponsored by NASA, Goddard, Naval Research Lab, and OGC. The source code will be hosted on geobliki.com.

• [September 12, 2006] "Web Services for Geographic Information Systems." By Shengru Tu and Mahdi Abdelguerfi. From IEEE Internet Computing (September 2006). [Editorial overview:] "Enterprises in the public and private sectors have recently produced a surge in Web services and Web applications for geographic information systems (GISs), making large spatial-data archives available over the Internet. Google Maps, Google Earth, and Microsoft Virtual Earth, for example, introduce GIS services to ordinary Internet users with astonishing aerial imagery and responsive performance. Logically, maps are a natural platform on which information from different perspectives can converge through geographic locations. Technically, Web services technologies have provided the necessary standards for applications in different domains to integrate with GIS data and services. Significant accomplishments in GIS Web services have led to several exemplifying map and image services that adhere to Web services standards and bring terabytes of geospatial data and digital maps to enterprise developers who house no GIS data. In parallel with the development of general-purpose Web services, the Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC) has successfully executed efforts for GIS interoperability. For example, the OGC Web Services (OWS) initiative has undergone multiple phases — including the Web Map Server (WMS), Web Feature Server (WFS), Web Coverage Server (WCS), and OGC Web Service Architecture, which support application developers in integrating a variety of online geoprocessing and location services. Conceptually, the OWS technology stack is a service-oriented architecture (SOA) that includes service discovery, description, and binding layers corresponding to UDDI, WSDL, and SOAP in the W3C architecture. Currently, OGC is attempting to integrate the Web services standards into the OWS framework, including specifying changes to the common OWS architecture and providing WSDL descriptions in WMS, WFS, and WCS. The articles in this issue's theme section aim to reflect the state-of-the-art development in GIS Web services from different angles. See also the abstract.

• [July 18, 2006] "The GML Simple Feature Profile and You." By Sam Bacharach. From Directions Magazine (July 18, 2006). Here's a problem that a growing number of geospatial software developers face: adding support for the Open Geospatial Consortium's (OGC) OpenGIS Geography Markup Language Encoding Specification (GML). Simply stated, GML is a standard to encode geometry and attributes using XML. Once the marketing department and user input confirm that supporting this standard is worth doing, programmers have to make it happen. Sure, programmers can do that; they can do anything. What's the big deal? The big deal is that the current GML specification runs 600 pages, details 1,000 tags (named objects), defines many of the geometries for describing features on the earth, and also supports the ability to encode coverages (including imagery), topology, time, metadata and dynamic features. GML was designed to be very broad and cover many needs. Recall, too, that to fully implement the specification, the programmers have to create software that will not only write out data in this form, but also can read it in. It's perhaps akin to requesting support for the 64 colors in the big crayon box. After some discussion, the group has decided to include just "simple features." In essence, only the vocabulary of "simple features" is supported in the profile. Officially, the profile includes "points, lines, and polygons (and collections of these), with linear interpolation between vertices of lines, and planar (flat) surfaces within polygons." The GML Simple Feature Profile and other GML profiles that will appear in the coming months and years offer ways to create the right tool for the job, thus making everyone's geospatial life not only more interoperable, but also easier.

• [May 03, 2006] "GeoRSS: Geographically Encoded Objects for RSS Feeds." By Sam Bacharach. GeoRSS GML is a formal GML Application Profile, and supports a greater range of features than Simple, notably coordinate reference systems other than WGS84 latitude/longitude. It is designed for use with Atom 1.0, RSS 2.0 and RSS 1.0, although it can be used just as easily in non-RSS XML encodings. GeoRSS Simple has greater brevity, but also has limited extensibility. It can be used in all the same ways and places as GeoRSS GML. The georss.org web site describes a number of ways to encode location in RSS feeds. As RSS becomes more and more prevalent as a way to publish and share information, it becomes increasingly important that location is described in an interoperable manner so that applications can request, aggregate, share and map geographically tagged feeds. Perhaps the most powerful advantages of GeoRSS feeds will be seen in the possibilities for geographic search and aggregation. More than just getting feeds for a particular city or zip code, using GeoRSS it will be posssible to search with all sorts of geographic criteria. See also the OGC announcement.

• [March 28, 2006] "Government Gets Together on Geospatial Architecture." By Sam Bacharach. From Directions Magazine (March 28, 2006). In this article the author looks at a US federal government initiative that more or less ensures that such capabilities will, in a reasonably short time, become widely available to people working in federal, state and local government agencies, and to US citizens. To ensure that the FEA would optimally meet the cross-cutting geospatial service needs of all the agencies, the Federal Geographic Data Committee and the Federal CIO Architecture and Infrastructure Committee (AIC) worked together with others in a group called the "FEA Geospatial Community of Practice" last year to create Version 1.1 of the Geospatial Profile for the FEA. That profile is also known as the Geospatial Enterprise Architecture (GEA). The GEA Version 1.1 is now in active use, providing guidance to agency architects and CIOs to help them identify and promote consistent geospatial patterns in their organizational designs. Detailed information about the process and the documents in work are available. A number of OGC experts have also been active in the Geospatial Community of Practice, providing insight into the adopted OpenGIS Specifications that comprise the OGC Web Services (OWS) suite of interoperability standards and also the proposed standards that are under development inside OGC.

• [March 11, 2005]   OGC Launches Initiative to Support GML Metadata Encoding in JPEG 2000 Image Files.    In February 2005 the Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC) launched a new Encoding Interoperability Experiment relating to the use of the Geography Markup Language in JP2 (JPEG 2000) image files. The goal is to support a standardized mechanism for inclusion of geo-referencing information as XML-encoded metadata within the ISO 15444 JPEG 2000 image format. The Geography Markup Language (GML) is the most widely supported open specification for representation of geographic (spatial and location) information. It defines XML encoding for the transport and storage of geographic information, including both the geometry and properties of geographic features. In keeping with OGC's IPR Policy for royalty-free OGC standards, the GML specification is freely available for use on royalty-free terms. GML provides a variety of kinds of objects for describing geography including features, coordinate reference systems, geometry, topology, time, units of measure and generalized values. As with other XML-based or XML-aware image file formats, the JPEG 2000 standard makes provision for several forms of XML-encoded metadata in the JPX file format within reserved 'boxes'. Normative Annex M 'JPX file format extended metadata definition and syntax' defines a comprehensive set of optional metadata elements that may be embedded in a JPX file within XML boxes. Metadata types are documented in four logical groups: image creation metadata, content description metadata, metadata history metadata, and intellectual property rights metadata. Section M.8 supplies the JPX extended metadata document type definition (DTD). The standardized part of the metadata model is based upon the DIG35 Metadata Standard for Digital Images. Information in the XML 'box' is not application specific, however, allowing for arbitrary conforming XML-encoded metadata. The new Open Geospatial Consortium "GML in JPEG" Interoperability Experiment has been formed to "test and refine a draft implementation specification that defines how Geography Markup Language is to be used within JPEG 2000 data packages for geographic imagery. The Interoperability Experiment will implement several prototype GMLJP2 codecs (data compressor/decompressors) based upon an OGC draft specification 04-045 titled "GML in JPEG 2000 for Geographic Imagery"; this specification proposal was submitted to OGC by Galdos Systems Inc. and LizardTech. The purpose is to confirm that the specification will support the requirements of geospatially related imagery over the Internet, and to improve the specification if it does not support these requirements. The participants will perform several individual experiments of increasing complexity and will demonstrate encoding similar to GeoTIFF."

• [February 25, 2005] "OGC Update: 52nd Technical Committee and Planning Committee Meetings." By Sam Bacharach. In Directions Magazine (February 25, 2005). "The Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC) held its 52nd Technical Committee and Planning Committee Meetings during the week of January 17, 2005 in New York City. Over 150 OGC members collaborated throughout a week that was extremely productive in terms of agreements on a range of standards for enabling interoperability. OGC members voted to release three documents as official OGC recommendation papers advancing standards work in the areas of XML encoding of common coordinate reference system definitions, XML encoding of image coordinate reference system definitions, and a document defining best practices for all OGC Web Services related interface specifications. Nine discussion papers were released, covering an interface for a web-accessible coordinate transformation service; using the OASIS BPEL for service chaining of image handling functions for decision support; a web accessible 3D portrayal service, a web accessible image classification service, and a draft definition for imagery metadata. Seven OpenGIS Specifications moved into the final approval process; topics include: a new common specification that provides a basic set of rules for OGC Web Services; an ISO19115/19119 (metadata) profile for catalog services; a 'Web Map Context Documents' specification that describes how context information can be defined in XML and saved so that web maps created by users can be reconstructed and augmented by the user or other users in the future; new versions of the specifications for GML (Geography Markup Language), Open Location Services, WFS (Web Feature Server), and Filter Encoding (Filter Encoding defines a standard encoding for queries that retrieve objects that lie in a particular region; and a new GO (Geospatial Objects) specification that defines an open set of common, lightweight, language-independent abstractions for describing, managing, rendering, and manipulating geometric and geographic objects within an application programming environment. Regarding the GO specification, the PC unanimously agreed that work on APIs (application programming interfaces) or interfaces for tightly coupled architectures (as opposed to loosely coupled architectures like the web) is germane and valuable in terms of the work of the consortium and the PC fully endorses and supports such work..."

• [October 11, 2004] "Compact GML: Merging Mobile Computing and Mobile Cartography." By Andrea Piras, Roberto Demontis, Emanuela De Vita, and Stefano Sanna (CRS4, Center for Advanced Studies, Research and Development in Sardinia, Pula (CA), Italy). Presented at the GML and Geo-Spatial Web Services Conference 2004 (July 25-29, 2004, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada). 20 pages (with 41 references). "The use of portable devices is moving from 'Wireless Applications', typically implemented as browsing-on-the-road, to 'Mobile Computing', which aims to exploit increasing processing power of consumer devices. As users get connected with smartphones and PDAs, they look for geographic information and location-aware services. While browser-based approaches have been explored (using static images or graphics formats such as Mobile SVG), a data model tailored for local computation on mobile devices is still missing. This paper presents the Compact Geographic Markup Language (cGML) that enables design and development of specific purpose GIS applications for portable consumer devices where a cGML document can be used as a spatial query result as well... The compact version of GML 2.1.2 is based on short tags and encoded with pre-projected and pre-scaled coordinates... The cGML design and development follow the Dynamic Systems Development Method (DSDM) principals and they have been characterized by a continuous designing, coding and testing loop. Design phase concerns design specifications of XML elements and attributes. Development phase concerns actual XML Schemas definition, their example instances, the parser, the server side and the client viewers. During integration and test phase, the different parts are put together and tested. The test results become the input for restarting the cycle. Our attention has been focused on to find a compromise between the geographic information, their visual representation and the mobile device power processing capabilities of the J2ME enabled devices. Since target platform has stronger limits than SymbianOS or WindowsCE/PocketPC operating systems, design phase has required to investigate the device limits and sometimes application models have been trashed since they were not appliable on the commercial devices. The result of this iterative process is cGML 1.0 and application prototype. cGML acts as model and view at the same time. The geographic information can be totally transferred to client device for drawing, caching, and local operations without a permanent connection to the server, keeping some XML key features (platform independent, easily extensible, human readable)..." [cache]

• [May 12, 2004]   OGC Interoperability Experiment for LandXML and Geography Markup Language (GML).    The Open GIS Consortium has announced its first Interoperability Experiment involving the Geography Markup Language (GML) Version 3.1 and LandXML Version 1.0. OGC Interoperability Experiments are "brief, inexpensive, low-overhead initiatives led and executed by OGC members to achieve specific technical objectives that further the OGC Technical Baseline; three or more OGC members launch and run an initiative without the more substantial sponsorship that supports OGC's traditional testbeds and pilot projects. These initatives can be for specification development, refinement, or testing or for other purposes." LandXML Version 1.0 is "an industry-driven, open XML data exchange standard that provides interoperability in more than 40 software applications serving the civil engineering, survey and transportation industries. The LandXML.org Industry Consortium, initiated by Autodesk and now comprised of 190 companies, government agencies and universities, developed the standard. LandXML is now broadly supported in online cadastral applications, GIS applications, Survey field instruments, Civil Engineering desktop and CAD-based applications, instant 3D viewers and high end 3D visualization rendering applications." LandXML XML Schema root nodes include Alignments, Application, CgPoints, CoordinateSystem, GradeModel, Monuments, Parcels, PipeNetworks, PlanFeatures, Project, Roadways, Surfaces, Survey, and Units. OGC's Geography Markup Language (GML) is a "widely supported open specification for representation of geographic (spatial and location) information. It defines XML encoding for the transport and storage of geographic information, including both the geometry and properties of geographic features." The LandGML IE initiated by US Army Corps of Engineers ERDC, Autodesk and Galdos Systems "will test a GML 3.0 application schema for encoding LandXML 1.0 documents (LandGML) and will provide a tool to transform LandXML 1.0 documents into LandGML documents. In a second phase, a tool will be developed to transform LandGML documents to LandXML 1.0 documents."

• [March 19, 2004] "Major OGC Web Services Initiative Begins." - "The Open GIS Consortium Inc. (OGC) announced the successful March 8-12, 2004 kickoff of a major new Interoperability Initiative to develop and enhance OGC Web Services (OWS) standards that enable easy discovery, access and use of geographic data and geoprocessing services. Building on work from previous OGC initiatives and technical working groups, OWS-2 participants are now working collaboratively to extend and 'ruggedize' existing and draft OpenGIS standards. The goal is a robust and complete interoperability framework for implementation within a multi-vendor enterprise and to achieve interoperability between enterprises for geoprocessing solutions in government and business. The initiative's sponsors — BAE Systems, Collaxa, The Federal Geographic Data Committee (FGDC), Lockheed Martin, National Atmospheric and Space Administration (NASA), Questerra, Spot Image (France), Sun Microsystems, US Geological Survey (USGS), and other organizations — provided development requirements. Requirements categories include: (1) Common Architecture: Enabling OpenGIS Web Services utilizing W3C's WSDL and SOAP standards. (2) Conformance, Interoperability Testing, and Evaluation: Developing compliance tests for and improving the OpenGIS Specifications for Web Map Service (WMS), Web Feature Service (WFS), Web Coverage Service (WCS), and Catalog Services — Web (CS-W). A Reference Implementation for Web Coverage Server and for Catalog Services — Web will be created under this initiative. (3) Image Handling and Decision Support Tools: Establishing a new benchmark for creating value-added products for geospatially enabled decisions. User-defined workflow is enabled by web service access to data and chaining of image processing services. (4) Information Interoperability: Advancing information (semantic) interoperability of geospatial data sets using GML and advancing connections with Web Feature Server and GML 3. GML application schemas for civil and defense data products will be created using GML 3. Standards-based Commercial-of-the-shelf clients to OGC Web Services will be extended to meet the requirements of the government communities represented by the agencies sponsoring OWS-2. (5) Location Based Services. New services for Navigation and Location Refinement will be added to OGC's existing Open Location Services Standard..."

• [January 21, 2004]   Approved OpenLS Specification Supports Interoperable Location Service Applications.    OpenGIS Consortium (OGC) members recently approved the OpenGIS Location Services (OpenLS) Specification for public release. The primary objective of the OpenLS Implementation Specification is "to define access to the Core Services and Abstract Data Types (ADT) that comprise the GeoMobility Server, an open location services platform. 'Abstract Data Types' is a basic information construct consisting of well-known data types and structures for location information, defined as application schemas that are encoded in XML for Location Services (XLS). XLS is defined as the method for encoding request/response messages and associated Abstract Data Types for the GeoMobility Server. "The interfaces allow telecommunications companies, telematics service providers, traditional GIS technology companies, and location-based services (LBS) providers to efficiently implement interoperable LBS applications that seamlessly access multiple content repositories and service frameworks that work across the world's many different wireless networks and devices." OpenLS Core Services are specified in five parts. The Directory Service is "a network-accessible service that provides access to an online directory (e.g., Yellow Pages) to find the location of a specific or nearest place, product or service. The Gateway Service is a network-accessible service that fetches the position of a known mobile terminal from the network; this interface is modeled after the Mobile Location Protocol (MLP), Standard Location Immediate Service. The Location Utility Service provides a Geocoder/Reverse Geocoder; the Geocoder transforms a description of a location, such as a place name, street address or postal code, into a normalized description of the location with a Point geometry. The Presentation (Map Portrayal) Service portrays a map made up of a base map derived from any geospatial data and a set of ADTs as overlays. The Route Service determines travel routes and navigation information between two or more." Annex A.1 supplies the normative OpenLS Core Services Schema for the XML/S Profile; Annex A.2 provides an informative OpenLS Schema for the SOAP Profile. Normative references include the OpenGIS Geography Markup Language (GML), W3C XML Linking Language (XLink), and W3C XML Schema; some schemas have been updated to interoperate with the Open Mobile Alliance (OMA) Mobile Location Protocol Specification (MLP). The OpenLS Implementation Specification was submitted to OGC by Autodesk (Canada), ESRI (USA), Image Matters (USA), Intergraph IntelliWhere (Australia), MapInfo (USA), Navigation Technologies (USA), Oracle (USA), Sun Microsystems (USA), and Webraska (France).

• [November 24, 2003]   Open GIS Consortium Issues RFQ for OGC Web Services Phase 2 Interoperability Initiative.    The Open GIS Consortium Inc. (OGC) has announced a Request for Quotations from technology developers in connection with the OGC Web Services Phase 2 (OWS-2) testbed. OGC Web Services make up a the set of OpenGIS Specifications for interfaces, schemas, and encodings that comprise the interoperability framework for the emerging Spatial Web. "OWS-2 is part of OGC's Interoperability Program, a global, collaborative, hands-on engineering and testing program that rapidly delivers proven candidate specifications into OGC's Specification Program, where they are formalized for public release." Participants in the initiative will develop enhancements and compliance tests for current OpenGIS Specifications, including Open Location Services, the Web Map Service (WMS), Web Feature Service (WFS), Web Coverage Service (WCS), Web Object Service (WOS), Catalog Services, and Geography Markup Language version 3.x. In OGC's Interoperability Initiatives, international teams of technology providers work together to solve specific geoprocessing interoperability problems posed by the Initiatives' Sponsors. The sponsors for this OGC initiative include: The Federal Geographic Data Committee (FGDC), General Dynamics, Lockheed Martin, NASA, Spot Image (France), Sun Microsystems, and other organizations. The Open GIS Consortium is "an international industry consortium of 257 companies, government agencies and universities participating in a consensus process to develop publicly available interface specifications. OpenGIS Specifications support interoperable solutions that geo-enable the Web, wireless and location-based services, and mainstream IT. The specifications empower technology developers to make complex spatial information and services accessible and useful with all kinds of applications."

• [July 21, 2003] "Intergraph Advances Open Data Exchange of Geospatial Information with New GML and WFS Interoperability Extensions. Free Desktop GeoMedia Viewer to Enable GML and WFS Query and Viewing Capabilities." - "Intergraph Mapping and Geospatial Solutions today announced that two free interoperability extensions are available for download: the OpenGIS Geographic Markup Language (GML) and the OpenGIS Web Feature Services (WFS) data servers, as well as the GML export command. These extensions are designed for any GeoMedia 5.1 product. Additionally, the OpenGIS Web Map Server (WMS) adapter kit for easy creation of a WMS server is now available for GeoMedia WebMap products. Users can query and view data accessed via the WFS interface through GeoMedia Viewer 5.1, Intergraph's free and easy-to-use GIS software application for desktop viewing and distribution of geospatial data. GeoMedia Viewer gives professionals access to geospatial vector and raster data in open formats or through open interfaces, including GML and WFS as well as previously available formats - Access, ArcView and MapInfo. By allowing data servers to be accessed simultaneously, GeoMedia Viewer offers the functionality to integrate and overlay spatial information while providing dynamic updates as the source information changes. With GeoMedia Viewer, organizations can maximize the value of their geospatial data by extending availability to novice users who otherwise would not have access... 'These free interoperability extensions further promote data sharing across different platforms, vendor brands and networks, thus increasing collaboration and communication between organizations and users,' said Fiona McKee, Global Program Manager Education and Interoperability, Intergraph Mapping and Geospatial Solutions. 'Intergraph continues to drive open data exchange to put virtually any geospatial information available via the Web at the user's fingertips.' Carl Reed, executive director of the OpenGIS Consortium (OGC) specification program, commented: 'The WFS and GML extensions to the GeoMedia product line once again demonstrate Intergraph's leadership and commitment to open standards and the vision of the OGC. Intergraph's endorsement of WFS will serve to accelerate the use and adoption of this important OpenGIS interface specification in the marketplace.'... From conception, Intergraph's GeoMedia solutions have been built with open interoperability principles in mind. Therefore, the WMS, WFS and GML data servers and other open functionality are smooth and complementary additions to the products' architecture. Intergraph also has established a number of initiatives to further advocate interoperability..."

• [May 30, 2003]   OpenGIS Consortium Publishes Web Map Server Cookbook.    The OpenGIS Consortium (OGC) has released a draft Version 1.0 Web Map Server Cookbook as "the first in a planned series of books detailing the implementation and use of OpenGIS Specifications." This Cookbook covers the XML-based Web Map Server (WMS) interface implementation specification. WMS "defines interfaces for Web-based software to learn about, retrieve, merge and query maps. The Cookbook provides the basic understanding and steps needed for implementing and exploiting the WMS interface and related technologies. Chapter 1 establishes the background and context of the WMS interface implementation specification including a discussion of WMS client and server development technologies (XML, XSL/XSLT, ASP/JSP, etc.). Chapter 2 addresses the design architecture of software systems that implement the WMS interface through use-case scenarios, WMS request examples, and illustrations. DTD/XML documents and XSL/XSLT style sheet examples highlight the role these technologies can play in WMS client and server implementations. Chapter 3 explores implementations of WMS in existing software on both the server and client side. Detailed 'recipes' for implementing WMS in popular commercial, open source and freeware products are provided. The OpenGIS Specifications support interoperable solutions that 'geo-enable' the Web, wireless and location-based services, and mainstream IT."

• [April 22, 2003] "OGC Prototyping US Government's Open Platform 'GeoSpatial One-Stop Portal'." - "The Open GIS Consortium (OGC) announced today that work on the Geospatial One Stop Portal architecture and prototype is well underway by OGC member companies. As of this date, the following companies are actively participating or have agreed to provide technology: Compusult, CubeWerx, Galdos Systems, SAIC, Autodesk, Intergraph, PCI Geomatics, Sapient Technology, Questerra, Oracle and Northrop Grumman Information Technology, TASC. Twenty companies offered proposals in response to a December, 2002 Request for Quotations (RFQ)/Call for Participation (CFP) in the OGC Geospatial One-Stop Portal Initiative (GOS-PI). The goal of the GOS-PI is to build a standards-based architecture and prototype for a portal that will provide geospatial information discovery, access, and mapping in the US. The portal implementation will be a "prototype" in the literal sense of a first working example on which future instances will be based. OGC is partnering with the Geospatial One-Stop (GOS) project on this work. Led by the Department of the Interior, GOS is one of 24 US Office of Management and Budget E-Government initiatives to improve effectiveness, efficiency, and customer service throughout all layers of government. Geospatial One-Stop builds upon National Spatial Data Infrastructure objectives to enhance interoperability among geographic components of government activities. More information about Geospatial One-Stop is available at http://www.geo-one-stop.gov/... GOS-PI is part of OGC's Interoperability Program, a global, collaborative, hands-on engineering and testing program that rapidly delivers proven candidate specifications into OGC's Specification Program, where they are formalized for public release. In OGC's Interoperability Initiatives, international teams of technology providers work together to solve specific geoprocessing interoperability problems posed by the Initiative's sponsoring organizations... OGC is an international industry consortium of more than 250 companies, government agencies and universities participating in a consensus process to develop publicly available interface specifications. OpenGIS Specifications support interoperable solutions that "geo-enable" the Web, wireless and location-based services, and mainstream IT. The specifications empower technology developers to make complex spatial information and services accessible and useful with all kinds of applications..." See also OGC Interoperability Program

• [February 21, 2003] "Web Map Context Documents." Edited by Jean-Philippe Humblet (IONIC Software sa). Request for Comment, OpenGIS Implementation Specification. From Open GIS Consortium Inc. Version 0.1.7, 2003-01-21. Reference number: OGC 03-036. 25 pages. Submitted to the GIS Consortium Inc. as a Request For Comment (RFC) by: Ionic Software (Belgium); GeoConnections / Natural Resources Canada; US National Aeronautics and Space Administration; DM Solutions; Social Change Online; Syncline. Annex A.1: Web Map Context Document XMLSchema; A.2: Web Map Context XML Example. "This specification applies to the creation and use of documents which unambiguously describe the state, or 'Context,' of a WMS Client application in a manner that is independent of a particular client and that might be utilized by different clients to recreate the application state. This specification defines an encoding for the Context using Extensible Markup Language. This specification is relevant to Clients of the OGC Web Map Service (WMS 1.0, WMS 1.1.0, WMS 1.1.1)... This document is a companion specification to the OpenGIS Web Map Service Interface Implementation Specification version 1.1.1, [which] specifies how individual map servers describe and provide their map content. The present Context specification states how a specific grouping of one or more maps from one or more map servers can be described in a portable, platform-independent format for storage in a repository or for transmission between clients. This description is known as a 'Web Map Context Document,' or simply a 'Context.' A Context document includes information about the server(s) providing layer(s) in the overall map, the bounding box and map projection shared by all the maps, sufficient operational metadata for Client software to reproduce the map, and ancillary metadata used to annotate or describe the maps and their provenance for the benefit of human viewers. A Context document is structured using eXtensible Markup Language (XML). Annex A of this specification contains the XMLSchema against which Context XML can be validated. There are several possible uses for Context documents: (1) The Context document can provide default startup views for particular classes of user. Such a document would have a long lifetime and public accessibility. (2) The Context document can save the state of a viewer client as the user navigates and modifies map layers. (3) The Context document can store not only the current settings but also additional information about each layer (e.g., available styles, formats, SRS, etc.) to avoid having to query the map server again once the user has selected a layer. (4) The Context document could be saved from one client session and transferred to a different client application to start up with the same context. Contexts could be cataloged and discovered, thus providing a level of granularity broader than individual layers..." See the announcement: "OGC Seeks Comment on Proposed Web Map Context Specification." [cache]

• [February 07, 2003] "Is GML only for Internet GIS?" By Mark Prins (CARIS Geographic Informations Systems BV). In Directions Magazine (February 07, 2003). "Geography Markup Language (GML) is a standardized means of storing geographic information in eXtensible Markup Language (XML) encoded files specified by the openGIS Consortium. XML, an open, ASCII based, format uses descriptive tags to store data doing away with any proprietary vendor specific formats. Tags may be nested within each other and may be extended in an object oriented like manner to suit your own data model, while maintaining compatibility with the standard... The OpenGIS consortium has defined a software interface called the Web Feature Server (WFS) that will allow you to offer an online GML service. Most vendors have a Web Feature Server implementation available as off the shelf package, usually this supports vendor specific data formats only. To generate maps without advanced clients you can use another OpenGIS specified software interface: the Web Map Server (WMS). The WMS will render a map as an image based or return attribute data in a predefined format, among others GML... All OpenGIS Web Feature Server implementations, such as the CARIS Spatial Fusion transactional WFS, support GML; most Web Map Servers have some level of GML support (for attribute data and bounding box definition). As far as spatial databases (like Oracle Spatial and PostGIS) are concerned, most have support for GML loading and export. Making a converter for reading GML files into your desktop GIS is almost trivial because of the large number of XML parsers and libraries available and wide support for scripting of applications through use of languages such as Visual Basic for Applications. An example; GeoPortal and the CARIS Spatial Fusion services CARIS has implementations of both the Open GIS specified Web Feature Server (WFS) and Web Map Server (WMS) as part of the CARIS Spatial Fusion suite of products. Both a standalone as well as a cascading Web Map Server (cWMS) are available... As the GML standard matures to a more robust spatial format with support for topology, versioning and indexing we will see more and more applications supporting GML as a 'native' format. Geographic Markup Language will enable the step from Geographic Information System to Geographic Information Infrastructure..."

• [January 22, 2003] "OpenGIS Catalog Services Specification." Edited by Douglas Nebert. From Open GIS Consortium Inc. Version: 1.1.1. Date: 2002-12-13. OpenGIS project document reference: OGC 02-087r3. Category: OpenGIS Implementation Specification. 239 pages. Section 9.4 'Interface Definition' (pages 88-94) supplies the XML encoding rules. "OpenGIS Catalog Service Implementation Specification: The OpenGIS Catalog Service Specification version 1.1.1 documents industry consensus regarding an open, standard interface to online catalogs for geographic information and web-accessible geoprocessing services. Industry agreement on a common interface for publishing metadata and supporting discovery of geospatial data and services is an important step toward giving Web users and applications access to all types of "where" information. Version 1.1.1 is more comprehensive than earlier OpenGIS Catalog Service Specification versions and proposals. It addresses the controlled enterprise environment where a-priori knowledge exists about the client and server, and it also addresses the global Internet case where no a-priori knowledge exists between client and server. It is consistent with existing and pending geomatics and metadata standards under the ISO Technical Committee 211, and it is consistent with XML data discovery and processing and with the emerging Web Services infrastructure. The [specification] document provides guidance on the deployment of catalog services through the presentation of abstract and implementation-specific models. Catalog services support the ability to publish and search collections of descriptive information (metadata) for data, services, and related information objects. Metadata in catalogs represent resource characteristics that can be queried and presented for evaluation and further processing by both humans and software. Catalog services are required to support the discovery of registered information resources within a collaborating community... For HTTP transport the XML messages are defined by the XML encoding rules. The specification for the XML encoding rules can be found at http://asf.gils.net/xer . This specification derives the encoding of the Application Protocol Data Units (APDUs) from the ASN.1 specification of Z39.50 available from http://lcweb.loc.gov/z39.50/agency/document.html . For information a DTD for Z39.50 encoded using XER is given below [...]" See other XML-based OpenGIS Implementation Specifications and the text of the 2003-01-22 announcement "OGC Approves Important Spatial Catalog Specification."

• [January 22, 2003] "OGC Approves Important Spatial Catalog Specification." - "The Open GIS Consortium, Inc. (OGC) has announced industry approval of an expanded version of the OpenGIS Catalog Service Implementation Specification. The OpenGIS Catalog Service Specification version 1.1.1 documents industry consensus regarding an open, standard interface to online catalogs for geographic information and web-accessible geoprocessing services. Industry agreement on a common interface for publishing metadata and supporting discovery of geospatial data and services is an important step toward giving Web users and applications access to all types of 'where' information... Version 1.1.1 is more comprehensive than earlier OpenGIS Catalog Service Specification versions and proposals. It addresses the controlled enterprise environment where a-priori knowledge exists about the client and server, and it also addresses the global Internet case where no a-priori knowledge exists between client and server. It is consistent with existing and pending geomatics and metadata standards under the ISO Technical Committee 211, and it is consistent with XML data discovery and processing and with the emerging Web Services infrastructure. Catalog services support the ability to publish and search collections of descriptive information (metadata) for data, services, and related information objects. Metadata in catalogs represent properties of spatial data, such as geographic area of interest, that can be queried and presented for evaluation and further processing by both humans and software. Catalog services are required to support the discovery of registered information resources within and between collaborating communities that seek to share information efficiently. 'Communities' in the OGC context typically refer to communities who use similar naming schemas for geospatial features and phenomena such as roads, wetlands, land use zones, population density, etc... Doug Nebert of the US Federal Geographic Data Committee, who chairs the OGC Technical Committee Catalog Working Group, said, 'In government, business and academia, technical and semantic non-interoperability have long frustrated discovery and sharing of digital geographic information. This specification is the world's industry-approved design for a key part of all future internet-based solutions to these problems'..."

• [December 24, 2002]   Open GIS Consortium Issues RFC for Web Coverage Service Implementation Specification.    The Open GIS Consortium OGC) has published a Request for Comment on a proposal for technologies and needed interfaces required for OpenGIS Web Coverage Service (WCS) Implementation Specification. The specification document "explains how WCS serves to describe, request, and deliver multi-dimensional coverage data over the World Wide Web. WCS emphasizes 'simple' coverages (defined on some regular, rectangular grid or tesselation of space) and anticipates other coverage types defined in the OpenGIS Abstract Specification. This includes pixel and point grids, including aerial and satellite images and digital terrain models. Web Coverage Service provides access to intact (unrendered) geospatial information, as needed for client-side rendering, multi-valued coverages, and input into scientific models for advanced rendering and visualization clients."

• [November 11, 2002] "GIS Group Advances Info-Sharing Project. Open GIS Consortium, Census Bureau Work on Prototypes for Sharing Geospatial Data." By Brian Robinson. In Federal Computer Week (November 10, 2002). "The Open GIS Consortium Inc. (OGC) this month expects to launch the next stage of an initiative to help federal, state and local governments share information about systems of vital interest to national security. OGC expects to announce participants for the second phase of the pilot program of its Critical Infrastructure Protection Initiative (CIPI), with hopes of having systems to demonstrate by April. Through CIPI, OGC is developing a network via which different jurisdictions can share geospatial information about power plants, telecommunications networks and other core systems. The first CIPI phase, CIPI-1, began in October and is focused on creating an underlying system for CIPI applications, called the Critical Infrastructure Collaborative Environment. CIPI-2, sponsored by the U.S. Census Bureau, will result in two prototype applications: WebBAS, an online Boundary and Annexation Survey (BAS) that updates information on government boundaries collected from state, county and local governments; and a server solution for delivering Topologically Integrated Geographic Encoding and Referencing (TIGER) data via the Web for use by the public and organizations in compiling their own versions of maps... TIGER data, which is used to build maps, is currently delivered online, he said, but uses a proprietary format that has to be updated every few years, which is a cumbersome process. An OGC-compliant server solution will use open standards such as Geography Markup Language (GML)... [said David Sonnen, senior consultant for spatial data management at IDC]: 'The issues that OGC is tackling will show how GML and other GIS-specific geometry and text formats will manage that translation, he said, "and it's not a trivial thing to do'..."

• [February 28, 2001] Geography Markup Language (GML) 2.0. Edited by Simon Cox (CSIRO Exploration & Mining), Adrian Cuthbert (SpotOn MOBILE), Ron Lake (Galdos Systems, Inc.), and Richard Martell (Galdos Systems, Inc.). OGC Document Number: 01-029. February 20, 2001. Also in PDF and in .ZIP format. The Open GIS Consortium, supporting Geospatial and Information Technolgy Industries with open standards specifications, has now released Geography Markup Language (GML) 2.0 with a complete W3C XML Schema notation. Abstract: "The Geography Markup Language (GML) is an XML encoding for the transport and storage of geographic information, including both the spatial and non-spatial properties of geographic features. This specification defines the XML Schema syntax, mechanisms, and conventions that (1) Provide an open, vendor-neutral framework for the definition of geospatial application schemas and objects; (2) Allow profiles that support proper subsets of GML framework descriptive capabilities; (3) Support the description of geospatial application schemas for specialized domains and information communities; (4) Enable the creation and maintenance of linked geographic application schemas and datasets; (5) Support the storage and transport of application schemas and data sets; (6) Increase the ability of organizations to share geographic application schemas and the information they describe. Implementers may decide to store geographic application schemas and information in GML, or they may decide to convert from some other storage format on demand and use GML only for schema and data transport." [cache, PDF]

• [October 19, 2001]   UK Ordnance Survey's Digital National Framework (DNF) Tests XML Schemas for Geographical Information.    Through its XML Schema Repository, the UK Digital National Framework (DNF) has released a number of draft XML schemas supporting the Ordnance Survey's geographical database. The schemas are based upon extensions to the GML version 2.0 specification. The draft DNF Release 1 product data specification includes XML schema documents, a specification overview, classification and attributes of DNF features, DNF themes, lifecycles of DNF features, DNF geometry and topology, DNF data in GML, and a DNF glossary. The DNF application schemas "define four main types of properties that are present inside a feature element. These are simple, complex, geometric, and topological properties. The ordering of properties within a feature element is important as XML validation is reliant on elements being in a specified order; the order of properties is specified within the XML schema." The Digital National Framework (DNF) "is a definitive, consistent and maintained framework for the referencing of geographical information in Great Britain. It comprises the [UK] National Grid linked to Global Positioning System (GPS), height data, detailed topographic information and unique identifiers on features. Key elements are: (1) Polygons: the building blocks of the data representing real world features; (2) Maintained topographic identifiers (TOIDs) on all features -- some 400 million self-contained individual objects; (3) Seamless data; (4) A themed classification based on the real world; (5) Availability of data by themes; (6) Metadata on each feature..." [Full context]

• [August 22, 2001]   Open GIS Consortium Publishes Data Model for Coordinate Reference Systems and Coordinate Transformations.    A 121-page document Recommended Definition Data for Coordinate Reference Systems and Coordinate Transformations has been made available for public review by the Open GIS Consortium. The recommendation paper provides a data model which "harmonizes and improves the relevant XML work previously done by OGC. This OGC standard data model for coordinate reference systems and coordinate transformation definition data is intended for initial use with OGC's OpenGIS Geography Markup Language (GML) and Coordinate Transformation (CT) Implementation Specifications. That is, each of these two specifications is expected to use a subset and/or superset of the Definition Data described in the Recommendation Paper. The data model was developed using object-oriented analysis and design principles and is recorded in XML format. Future revisions of this specification will convert the current XML Document Type Definitions (DTD) to XML Schema." Section 6 supplies the normative XML data model; Annex D provides the uncommented XML DTDs; Annex E offers XML examples; Informative Annex G documents correspondences between the XML DTD and UML. OGC is "an international industry consortium of over 200 companies, government agencies and universities participating in a consensus process to develop publicly available geoprocessing specifications." [Full context]

• [April 04, 2001] "OpenGIS (OGC) Reaches Key Milestone in Development of a Geography Markup Language Specification to Enable Interoperable Web Mapping. OGC Releases GML, a Key Milestone in Interoperable Web Mapping " - "OGC (Open GIS Consortium) announces the release of Geography Markup Language version 2.0 (GML), a significant milestone in the development of interoperable architectures for the use of spatial information between commercial applications. The progress of GML 2.0 is an example of the growing momentum for the acceptance and use of OGC specifications around the world. GML represents one of the most visible steps taken by the geospatial community towards the vision of widespread spatial interoperability. The GML specification defines the features and syntax needed to encode geographic information in XML. The XML encoding described in the GML specification is intended to enable the transport and storage of geographic information, including both properties and geometry of geographic features. The GML specification was collaboratively developed by OGC members from the US, Canada, Europe, and Australia. The OGC membership is excited by the speed at which this XML-based encoding standard has moved from its beginnings in Web Mapping Testbed I, to a recommendation paper, and finally to a version that was ready for review by the OGC membership. The OGC Technical Committee voted unanimously to approve version 2 of the GML specification. By their vote, GML 2.0 will now be adopted as an implementation specification for public access. Even with the specification still awaiting final approval, GML 2.0 has been accepted widely by commercial and government organizations... The United Kingdom's Ordnance Survey has shown great interest in GML and notes on their website: 'Following extensive consultation we can confirm that it is our intention to produce all DNF data in GML format.' In addition, the Netherlands Society for Earth Observation and Geo-informatics (KvAG) have organized a 'GML Relay' in June to explore the movement of GML data through several vendor's software implementations. OGC is confident that other data focused organizations will follow suit, greatly enhancing the data directly useable to researchers, scientists, students and the general public... OGC, an international consortium of more than 200 corporations, agencies and universities, coordinates collaborative development of OpenGIS Specifications and collaborative business development to support full integration of geospatial data and geoprocessing resources into mainstream computing."

• [April 04, 2001] "OGC Releases a Request for Technology for a Major Web Services Initiative." - "OGC, Inc. (the Open GIS Consortium) today [March 28, 2001] announced the release of a Request for Technology (RFT) for a major OGC Web Services Initiative. The RFT is available at http://ip.opengis.org/ows/index.html. Responses to this RFT, along with financial commitments from sponsor organizations will help determine the focus areas that are undertaken as part of this initiative scheduled to commence in September 2001. OGC Web Services are envisioned as an evolutionary, standards-based framework that will enable seamless integration of a variety of online geoprocessing and location services. OGC Web Services will allow distributed geoprocessing systems to communicate with each other using technologies such as XML and HTTP. OGC Web Services will provide a vendor-neutral interoperable framework for web-based discovery, access, integration, analysis, exploitation and visualization of multiple online geodata sources, sensor-derived information, and geoprocessing and location capabilities... The OGC Web Services Initiative RFT provides details on several proposed focus areas, [including] (1) 3D / 4D - will extend OGC's [XML-based] Geographic Markup Language (GML), Simple Feature Access, and Web Feature Server specifications, with the goal of bringing time, topology, and more complex geometric representation capabilities into these OGC data access and manipulation services; (2) Sensor Web - will produce open specifications for information gathering from distributed, heterogeneous, dynamic information sensors, and Web resources through common gateways and interfaces ('Ask it, task it, see it'). Sensor Web will result in common interfaces (and an XML-based Sensor Markup Language) for managing sensor information and metadata independent of application. One goal is transparent integration of data from earth imaging platforms and ground collection systems (e.g., water quality monitoring, space-based imaging, GPS correction stations, etc.)..." Also in PDF format.

• [March 14, 2001] "GML 2 On the Way to Adoption." - "Open GIS Consortium, Inc. (OGC) announced today that the Geography Markup Language (GML) Editing Committee completed its work on the GML 2.0 Recommendation Paper. This action paves the way for balloting to make the paper an official OpenGIS Implementation Specification. The recommendation paper is available at http://www.opengis.org/techno/specs.htm. GML, a structure for storing and sharing geographic data, is an encoding of the OGC Simple Feature geometry model using Extensible Markup Language (XML). Geographic data stored in GML includes both the geometry (location) and descriptive attributes of map features. Part of the allure of GML is that software vendors who choose to support it will be able to access data from any source that publishes data expressed in GML, and then manage, display and use this data as they like. GML 2.0 significantly expands the capabilities of GML 1.0. GML 2.0 is based on XML Schema, and enables the encoding of complex features and feature associations. GML was one of several technology ideas that evolved from OGC's Web Mapping Testbed, which began operation in 1999. Since it was unveiled in 2000, interest in GML has been widespread and active for the following reasons: the reliance of GML on widely used, standardized XML assures that tools and experience are available in the marketplace; GML is easily accessible, using almost any programming language, allowing software developers to display, query and manipulate the data, as they need; and GML's flexibility allows the same data to be used in different ways by different applications, on a variety of platforms - a compelling feature for the mapping, Internet and location-based services communities... The OGC Technical Committee has begun electronic balloting for approval of the recommendation paper as a specification, with final voting to be completed by early April. With a final specification, software vendors can begin to implement GML in their offerings, and take another significant step toward data and software interoperability. OGC is an international industry consortium of over 200 companies, government agencies and universities participating in a consensus process to develop publicly available geoprocessing specifications. OpenGIS Specifications establish common interfaces that 'geo-enable' the Web and mainstream IT, enabling technology developers to make complex spatial information and services accessible and useful with all kinds of applications."

• [March 12, 2001] "A Request for Proposals: OpenGIS Feature Geometry." From the Open GIS Consortium, OGC Technical Committee, Geometry Working Group. Request Number 12. RFP Issue date: March 2, 2001. Letter Of Intent Due Date: 10-August-2001; Submission Due Date: 10-September-2001. "The purpose of this Request for Proposals (RFP) is to obtain proposals for technologies and needed interfaces required to access and manipulate geospatial information modeled with OpenGIS Feature Geometry. The scope of this RFP includes technologies that create, query, modify, translate, access and transfer geospatial information in the form of Open GIS feature geometry objects or collections of feature geometry objects. Of special interest are open interfaces that conform to the standards of CORBA, DCOM, SQL, and Internet standards such as JAVA and XML. Description of Item: OpenGIS Feature Information Access and Encoding using XML. By 'information encoding and service request using XML' we mean an XML compliant set of rules for the creation, population, query and response to query for the interoperable handling of feature operations, attributes, geometry, and geometry collections. Proposal Guidelines and Conventions Specific to XML: There are at least two distinct ways to use XML in an OGC Feature environment. The first is as a simple encoding and data transfer mechanism. The second is as a message format for the transmittal of requests for services and for the transmittal of the responses to those requests. The submitters must address both issues in their response to this item. Requirements Specific to XML: A proposal for Open GIS Feature Access and Encoding using XML shall additionally include (1) XML SR1: An outline how the specification might be modified to take advantage of ongoing proposals to change or extend XML, such as GML. (2) XML SR2: The specification should indicate the type of XML compliance required. (3) XML SR3: The specification should indicate how profiles (subsets) of the base standard can be defined to allow for simplified version of the XML for applications with specific requirements of compactness or performance (4) XML SR4: It should be possible to define the current GML 2.0 as a profile of the proposed XML encoding specification. (5) XML SR5: It should be possible to define the current Catalog Implementation Specification XML messages as a profile of the proposed XML messaging specification..."

• [March 12, 2001] OGC Seeks Input For Geographic Web Services Testbeds." - "The Open GIS Consortium, Inc (OGC) announced today its intent to release a Request for Technology (RFT) for a major Web Services Initiative. The RFT will be available on the OGC website by March 21, 2001. This set of six planned activities will extend OpenGIS standards, enabling freer access to web services that process geographic information. The Web Services Initiative is part of OGC's Interoperability Program, a global, collaborative, hands-on engineering and testing program that delivers proven candidate specifications into OGC's OpenGIS Specification Development Program. In OGC's Interoperability Initiatives, international teams of technology providers work together to solve specific geoprocessing interoperability problems posed by the Initiative's sponsors. The Web Services Initiative will build on the results of previous OGC testbeds and pilot projects and the work of the OGC Technical Committee and other standards organizations. Major focus areas of the Web Services Initiative are: (1) Web Mapping Testbed, Phase 3 will consolidate the progress made in previous testbeds with work accomplished in OGC Web Services Initiative threads. This activity will also investigate future web services for visualization, feature and coverage data access, and other services. (2) 3D / 4D will extend OGC's GML (XML encoding of geospatial data), Simple Feature Access, and Web Feature Server specifications, with the goal of bringing time, topology, and more complex geometric representation capabilities into these OGC data access and manipulation services. (3) Geoanalysis and Decision Support will develop interoperable service chaining (common expression and execution) and service metadata extensions for complex spatial models (e.g., science models). Goals include extending the OGC Basic Services Model and exercising key concepts in ISO 19119. (4) Information Community Enablement will create a new technical standards approach to overcoming the problem of semantic differences in geospatial data and associated metadata. It will focus on supporting 'Information Communities' using OGC Web Services, fielding data models across communities, and building tools for application schema creation, mapping, and migration. Candidate Information Communities include Earth Observation, Natural Resources, Disaster Management and Public Safety, Telecommunications, Defense and Intelligence, and Location Based Services, each of which is represented by an OGC Special Interest Group. (5) Web Based Exploitation will focus on an open e-commerce architecture that dynamically connects earth imagery and other geospatial information providers, maintainers, and users in collaborating communities, providing users with interoperable Web-based exploitation capabilities. (6) Sensor Web Enablement will produce open standards for Web-optimized information gathering from distributed, heterogeneous, dynamic information sensors, and Web resources through common gateways and interfaces ('Ask it, task it, see it'). It will result in common interfaces (and an XML-based Sensor Markup Language) for managing sensor information and metadata independent of application. One goal is transparent integration of data from earth imaging platforms and ground collection systems (for water quality, GPS correction stations, dynamic attribution sensors on lakes and dams, etc.)...OGC is an international industry consortium of over 200 companies, government agencies and universities participating in a consensus process to develop publicly available geoprocessing specifications. OpenGIS Specifications establish common interfaces that "geo-enable" the Web and mainstream IT, enabling technology developers to make complex spatial information and services accessible and useful with all kinds of applications."

• Components in the OGC Geocoding specification are available via an Open GIS Schema repository.

• Geography Markup Language (GML) Version 1.0. OGC Document Number: 00-029. Date: 12-May-2000. Edited by Ron Lake (Galdos Systems Inc.) and Adrian Cuthbert (Laser-Scan Ltd.). See also the .ZIP format, cache

• GML Feature DTD, [cache]

• GML Geometry DTD, [cache]

• [August 07, 2001]   Websign Markup Language Supports Ubiquitous, Location-Aware Computing.    See: Researchers in Hewlett-Packard's CoolTown research program are developing a "Websign" application for wireless devices which combines the advantages of wireless technology and ubiquitous computing "to provide a transparent linkage between the physical world and resources available on the Web." The websign technology "uses commonly available Internet-enabled wireless devices such as PDAs or smart phones equipped with client software, a positioning system such as GPS, and a digital compass to visualize services for physical entities. Devices sense physical entities in the environment and map them to a Web browser. When the user requests new information, the mobile device connects to a Web server and downloads and caches XML descriptions of websigns in a wide surrounding area. Websigns essentially bind location coordinates, control parameters such as access range, and a service represented by a URL. The Websign Markup Language (WsML), an XML application, is used to express the binding semantics: the Web servers host WsML for mobile devices to download over a cellular wireless connection. Mobile devices can also host WsML for other peer-to-peer devices. Typically, peer devices can communicate over short-range radio networks such as Bluetooth or send WsML embedded in text-message-over systems such as Short Message Service." WsML, similar to Geography Markup Language (GML), "provides a compact format for transmitting binding information over a low-bandwidth wireless network." [Full context]

• Note also the OpenGIS "WWW Mapping SIG" which "defines the services necessary for Web-based access to geodata and geoprocessing services, including 'Geospatial XML,' [?] or GML. Prioritizes interface development tasks according to market need, bandwidth considerations, etc. Coordinates with sponsors and participants of the Web Mapping Testbed..."

• GML RDF Schema Definition [cache]

• See also: "Point Of Interest Exchange Language Specification (POIX)."