Spatial data infrastructures (SDIs) provide a basis for spatial data discovery, evaluation, and application, and include the following elements: - Geographic data: the actual digital geographic data and information.
- Metadata: the data describing the data (content, quality, condition, and other characteristics). It permits structured searches and comparison of data in different clearinhouses and gives the user adequate information to find data and use it in an appropriate context.
- Framework: includes base layers, which will probably differ from location to location. It also includes mechanisms for identifying, describing, and sharing the data using features, attributes, and attribute values, as well as mechanisms for updating the data without complete re-collection.
- Services: to help discover and interact with data.
- Clearinghouse: to actually obtain the data. Clearinghouses support uniform, distributed search through a single user interface; they allow the user to obtain data directly, or they direct the user to another source.
- Standards: created and accepted at local, national, and global levels.
- Partnerships: the glue that holds it together. Partnerships reduce duplication and the cost of collection and leverage local/national/global technology and skills.
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