LoCloud geolocation enrichment tools: On the Map
Transcript of LoCloud geolocation enrichment tools: On the Map
On the Map
(Stein) Runar Bergheim (@runarbe)
Asplan Viak Internet AS
Who am I?
• I, (Stein) Runar Bergheim work for AVINETA small but perfectly shaped Norwegian tech company operating in Norway, Europe and the Middle East
• Been part of the community around Europeana since 2008EuropeanaLocal, CARARE, PATHS - and presently LoCloud
• Feel privileged to be part of a project and community with brilliant people bringing forward the accumulated results of many Europeana projects
Just and ID, I thought…
• Identifiers: Numbers to find an item in a list, I thought• Intelligent identifiers in the digital era: the product of
deranged minds, I still think
• Little did I know about the people, resources engagement and community working eagerly to attach value-added information to the records identified by these strings and numbers – before I embarked on my journey with Europeana
Abc/1234_2334/12-1a/45:2
nbenfjglo000000001
Enrichment and data quality
Who What When Where
Location is greatFits «everything» togetherIs language independentThe «perfect» way of integrating heritage
(but brings with it it’s own set of challenges)
Geography excellentfor exploration
I know what I am looking for and I know it exists in there
I am interested in information that is relevant to my location/place
DatabaseMap
Location of a single object
Search and exploration
Visualization of related objects
The 19th centuryexploits of «Viking Danske»
Eivindvik
SvanøyAskrova
Kalvåg
MåløySelje
Source: «church books, birth registry»
So it is all good then?
well, there’s a tiny problem!Location is all but absent in most of the metadata contributed to EuropeanaMay exist «by proxy» Geographical names Contextual location (focus of collection, location of institution etc)
But to exploit the potential – we need coordinates
So how can we get coordinates?
Automatic geocoding Non-trivial but perfectly doable task Based on what exist in our metadata… Named entity extraction / geographical names Street addresses Property gazetteer identifiers
Sounds (too) good…What’s the catch? Can only find coordinates if metadata references
locations Typically finds «intermediate» resolution locations, i.e.
village, city, municipality etc. False «hits» due to common names i.e. «Blue
Mountains» Ambiguous hits – more than one hit per object Requires quality assurance
?
How to improve accuracy?There are two optionsA. Add locations to your metadata records manuallyB. Simply don’t do it; wait (or hope) for someone else to do it for
you
If you go for Option A Try to harness the knowledge and experience of individuals to
place your digital objects on the map It is urgent – the pyramids may not be forgotten so easily but
pieces of local history become extinct every day
Manually, you say…?
That is too much work! Just think about A, B, C … Z
It will certainly involve a lot of work and nobody says it is easy.
But it is made a great deal easier with the proper tool And this is where LoCloud and this presentation comes in…
And you can always ask for help; «the crowd» is out there …and if the Norwegian-American emigrant crowd is anything to go by – they
are active and committed, occasionally bordering on requiring a restraining order.
Principle: Enrichment at ornear source
Collection
management syste
m
Aggregator
Europeana
LoCloud’s approachWe’ve built a tool that allow you to add detailed geolocations to any existing data
Allow me to explain
Upload you
r data
as tables
Enrich
your content
using the
appliation
Download data
as tables, SQL statements or RDF
Update
your original
data source
Any is a «big word»
Prepare file
Only requirement is a unique id, a descriptive
title is helpful
Log in: http://locloud.avinet.no/demo
user
*****
Overview of User Interface
List of data sources
Top menu
List of items to be geotagged Geotagging,
editing form
Search databases
User management
Map, map tools
Search results
Upload data source
Create users
Assign access to users
Select data source
You can have many data
sources and control who
has access to do what with each source
Select item
Select, filter and navigate
your uploaded
data sources
Specify geometry
You can add points, lines or polygons
Select from different base maps
Mainstream web maps – but also
INSPIRE compliant map services
Edit attributes as well as location
Propose edits to title or any other
attribute
Set quality
Confidence is stored
Map resolution is
stored
Search for entities
Select from available
names sources: geonames,
LoCloud APIs,National
gazetteers
Click to openwith same
extent
Use alternative sources
Download data
Download as GeoJSON, KML,
RDF or CSV
Test in Google Earth
Where from here…?
• Visit: www.locloud.eu to learn about LoCloud
• A demo version of the tool is available to be tried out at locloud.avinet.no/demo
• If you want a user account or an introduction, email [email protected]
• Tool available under supported and GPL license –available for free on GitHub for «self-hosters»
Is it used?
• Yes, quite a lotBy ASPLAN VIAK AS – a Norwegian consulting engineering company (owner of AVINET)By NORPLAN AS – an international consulting partnership with an emphasis on South-Asia, Middle-East and Sub-Saharan AfricaBy the Ministry of Tourism in the Sultanate of Oman
The first user and the one who provided the requirements and specifications for the tool was the National Archives of Norway – big thanks.
Adding geolocation to your data:Is it worth the effort?
• You must assess for yourselfIf your mission is isolated to preserving historical records/information that are not in themselves geographical by nature, then maybe not.If your mission includes engaging the interest of your users and help them explore your content, then we believe yes.
• Catalogs and databases are tools for people who already know what they are looking for
• Maps are tools for explorers
…at the endof the road
Through LoCloud, AVINET has enjoiyed the experience of standing on the proverbial «shoulders of giants»…As we are approaching the end of our journey together – a big thanks to all of you – and in particular to Kate Fernie for managing our mostly benign but somewhat unruly partnership.
Thank you for the attention(assuming you paid any)
Stein Runar BergheimDirector of Research & Development
Asplan Viak Internet AS