2.2 Infrastructure Development
2.2.1 Network Information System (NIS): The LTER research network has a wealth of long-term data that are being collected by LTER investigators. With the publication of the LTER Catalog of Core Data Sets in 1990, this resource became more widely known within the ecological research community. During the same period, the Office funded a connectivity committee whose efforts resulted in nearly full Internet connectivity across the LTER Network. This infrastructure for electronic communication and data exchange substantially enhanced the traditional means of networking, and electronic versions of the Core Dataset Catalog and the LTER Personnel Directory became available to most researchers in 1991. The evolution of those data repositories from hardcopy versions to on-line databases accessible by e-mail, FTP, Gopher, WAIS, SQL and Web information servers demonstrates the successful use of the latest communications technology in the integration of individual sites into a research network.
While simplified, network-wide access was achieved through these efforts, the capacity for "seamless" information and data queries remains to be established and optimized. The Office and LTER data management group, in partnership with SDSC, are proposing to build a system that facilitates cross-site data exchange for intersite research; the LTER NETWORK Information System for the 21st Century. The primary objectives of the development effort are: 1) increase the utility of the existing system; and 2) increase access, query, and retrieval capabilities on intersite data. While the mission is to meet the research needs of LTER scientists, the information system will be available to the wider community of scientists.
Increase Utility of Existing System: The Office will be responsible for further development of the LTERnet Network Support System to maintain and expand the following core activities: 1) the LTERnet Information Server with links to site and international servers, 2) LTER Personnel Directory, 3) Core Dataset Catalog, 4) Cross-site Bibliography, 5) Satellite Imagery Archive, 6) Electronic Connectivity System, and 7) Query and Retrieval Systems to integrate these functions.
Increase Access and Query Capability on Intersite Data: The proposed effort will focus on advances for the Query and Retrieval system that will facilitate: 1) searching for data available anywhere in the LTER network; 2) combining and analyzing data from different sites; 3) answering standardized information requests; 4) building economical query systems for specific projects; and 5) building analysis and display tools that are intuitive to researchers.
In addition, the system will strive to integrate site-level information systems, not replace them. The envisioned system will be a distributed system using advanced client/server network tools, independent of computer platform, that will ensure the system is useful into the coming decade. The Network Information System will be designed, constructed and established through partnership of the Office technical staff, San Diego SuperComputer staff, LTER Data Management Committee and LTER scientists. A network information system working group was established at the August, 1995 Data Managers Meeting in Snowbird, Utah. This group has begun the process of developing a design document (available via WWW at http://time.lternet.edu/is/) and has established the following preliminary work plan for development and implementation of an LTER Network Information System.
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