the resource information management challenge – who’s on first?

2008 GIS & Data Management Conference

National Park ServiceU.S. Department of the Interior

The Resource Information Management Challenge –

Who’s On First?

Joe GregsonResource Information Management Division

Resource Information Management DivisionNational Information Services CenterOffice of the Chief Information Officer



OverviewThis Session’s Presentations• A Collaborative Services Culture…• Geographic Information Systems…• Digital Information Services…Session 25 (IRMA) Presentations• Laying the foundation for SOA…• The New NPSPecies…• The Future of the NPS Data Store

and NatureBib




A Collaborative Services Culture for Managing

Resource Information

The RIM Challenge• What is it?• Who’s on first?• Where is it going?• The legacy, present, and future




Sidebars

• Buzz word/BS Bingo• Confuseduser Sayings• Stovepipe Analogies




Confuseduser says:So many stovepipes, but where is the wok?

The Resource Information Management ChallengeWhat is it?



• Not a new idea!• A more comprehensive approach• Improving coordination,

collaboration, and communication• Bringing together communities• Revisiting requirements• Defining services• Evolving applications and systems• Bridging differences/filling gaps

Resource Information Management




Analogy: The Food Court at the Mall of the Universe

• Many restaurants with common requirements: tables, chairs, staff, stoves, ovens, food, supplies, etc.

• A few uncommon ones: flame-broilers, live lobsters, specialty wares (e.g., that wok!), etc.

• Restaurants/customers come and go, but the infrastructure andpartners are unaffected.




Vision for RIM in the NPSGIS• Well-organized, NPS-wide community• Variable program participationDigital Information Services (DIS)• Conceptually two program areas:

1. Digital Information Management2. Library Services

• No well-organized, formal community• Many sep. programs efforts




NPS GIS Program• GIS Council (GISC)

– Broad Representation– Collaborative Program Management– Base Budget Management

• Enterprise GIS Subcommittee• GPS/Mobile Mapping Subcommittee• Heritage Assets Subcommittee• Parks GIS Coordinators Group• Remote Sensing Subcommittee




• DIS Council (DISC)– Broad Representation– Collaborative Program Management

• Library Subcommittee• Image/Digital Photo Subcommittee• Document and Media Subcommittee• Parks Dig. Info. Managers Group

NPS DIS Program Plans




Digital Information Management• Digital Information = metadata and

associated digital files (e.g., photos, docs., other media and content)

• Metadata Management• Image Management• [Published] Document Management• Enterprise DIM Repositories (e.g.,

Data Store, Focus, and E-TIC)• Cross-repository Searching




The Legacy• Many programs and projects have

collected resource information• Few systematic approaches• Many stovepipe applications• Much has been lost, orphaned,

neglected, or of poor quality• Little sharing; much repeated work• GIS, I&M, ITC, and TIC initiate

data/information management

The Resource Information Management ChallengeWho’s on First?



The (Stovepipe) Legacy• NPS Data Store (and predecessors)• NPS Focus Digital Library and Research Station

• NPS Voyager Library Catalog• TIC Amoeba• Bibliographies

– NR/NatureBib, CRBIB, GRBIB, PaleoBib, others

• InsideNPS, NPS.GOV, websites• NPS Interactive Mapping Center• Many other efforts

National Park ServiceU.S. Department of the InteriorThe Resource Information Management Challenge

Who’s on First?



The Present

The Resource Information Management ChallengeWho’s on First?

• NPS.GOV’s Photo Gallery• NR Integrated Resource Management

Applications (IRMA)• Resource Information Management

Division applications and programs• Technical Information Center’s E-TIC• Opportunity/Challenge to leverage

these projects for a more broadly integrated, customer-focused approach



The Future?• Improved communication,

coordination and collaboration• Sustainable, standards-based data

and services• Web service tiers on all data

resources and repositories• Highly adaptable and reusable thin-

client user interfaces• Formal EA/SOA/ITIL approaches to

maximize business value

The Resource Information Management ChallengeWhere is it going?


National Park ServiceU.S. Department of the InteriorThe Resource Information Management Challenge

Where is it going?

Confuseduser says: Think locally,

act collaboratively.

Next Steps



Next StepsWork Toward the Vision• Improve governance/communication:

– Charter the DIS Council– Organize DIS Subcommittees– Document user requirements

• Collaborate on Services– Develop/implement standards– Embrace ITIL and SOA– Plan and publish services

The Resource Information Management ChallengeWhere is it going?



Questions?


the resource information management challenge – who’s on first?

Documents