Newsletter
May 2008
Recent event: DNF Roadshow, Cardiff - Helping you benefit your customers
The 2008 DNF Roadshow programme supported by AGI launched with an event at the Millennium Stadium, Cardiff on 7 May. The day started with formal presentations on three key themes: INSPIRE, service delivery and quality. These themes are directly related to the White Papers produced by the DNF Expert Group which will be published on the DNF website following the final Roadshow next month. The morning session provided plenty of food for thought which evoked lively discussion in the afternoon. Facilitated by the presenters, delegates were able to use their own experiences and examples to consider each topic in more depth and judging by the feedback received those attending found the day very informative.
Not all work - Given the prestigious venue, and glorious weather, we couldn't fail to take advantage of an opportunity to view the pitch from the Royal Box during a well deserved break for lunch.
Registration is still open for Manchester, Edinburgh and London Click hereto book your place now.
Technical update
This is a report on the work of the Technical Group and its sub-groups since the February's Newsletter. The Technical Group has the task of developing, publishing and maintaining the technical documentation and any associated services required to support DNF. In so doing, it needs to ensure that the technical architecture remains fit for purpose.
DNF Reference Base
The main area of activity has been a re-examination of the nature of the DNF Reference Base with a view to better meeting the needs of the earth sciences and other specialist communities. In the last Newsletter we reported on the Workshop on the nature of the DNF Reference Base which was held at the beginning of February. The establishment of a sub-group to develop the ideas brought out at the Workshop was recommended to the Expert Group at their meeting in March. This recommendation was accepted and a sub-group has been set up with John Laxton of BGS as the chair.
The DNF Reference Base sub-group held their first meeting on 12th May in the Natural History Museum and was well supported by a number of agencies concerned with the environment. Building on the ideas expressed at the original Workshop, there was a lot of discussion about increasing the scope of the current reference base and how this might be supported. To test some of these ideas, it was agreed to run a small pilot trial using data from various agencies to prove the feasibility of combining data from different sources e.g. soils, geology, habitat, marine. The potential limitations of doing this were recognised as were the dangers of extrapolating from a small sample area. An area has already been identified and work is starting on the pilot. Watch this space!
Feature cataloguing
The Feature Cataloguing sub-group have remained active and in addition to developing the feature cataloguing tool and creating a registry for registration and viewing of feature catalogues, they are now developing a Technical Guide.
DNF Technical Group
The DNF Technical Group has continued its work on the DNF technical architecture and the supporting documentation and services. The Group has nine members and has met once since the last Newsletter. The next meeting is in June.
For a roadmap of the activities of the Technical GroupClick here to see the DNF Overview document.
Current work includes Technical Guides for cross-referencing and conformance.
The strong interest in INSPIRE has been maintained since DNF aligns closely to it. DNF is a registered SDIC (Spatial Data Interest Community) and continues to comment on the Implementing Rules as they have issued in draft form.
The Technical Group would welcome your participation in the group or sub-group activities. Please Email.