XSLT FGDC-to-DIF Translator

IDN Metadata Translation via XSLT • Extensible Stylesheet Language Transformations

(XSLT)• W3C Recommendation Version 1.0• XSLT transforms information marked up in XML

from one vocabulary to another (O’Reilly XML.com)

• The IDN utilizes XSLT to translate heterogeneous metadata formats.– Currently used to translate NOAA NCDC and GeoConnections

Canada FGDC metadata to IDN DIF.

– Also used by GeoConnections Canada to translate IDN DIF to FGDC.

XSLT (FGDC-DIF) Translation Example

FGDC XML 1. FGDC Spatial Coverage group before translation.

<spdom>

<bounding>

<westbc> -180.0 </westbc>

<eastbc>180.0 </eastbc>

<northbc> 90.0 </northbc>

<southbc> -90.0</southbc>

</bounding>

</spdom>

XSLT Stylesheet

2. The XML is parsed through an XSLT parser.– The XSLT stylesheet provides the parser with guidelines for mapping the XML.

<!-- Spatial Coverage -->

<xsl:template match="spdom">

<Spatial_Coverage><xsl:apply-templates select="bounding" /></Spatial_Coverage>

</xsl:template>

<xsl:template match="bounding">

<Southernmost_Latitude><xsl:apply-templates select="southbc" /></Southernmost_Latitude>

<Northernmost_Latitude><xsl:apply-templates select="northbc" /></Northernmost_Latitude>

<Westernmost_Longitude><xsl:apply-templates select="westbc" /></Westernmost_Longitude>

<Easternmost_Longitude><xsl:apply-templates select="eastbc" /></Easternmost_Longitude>

</xsl:template>

DIF XML

3. The XSLT parser outputs properly formed IDN DIF XML.

<Spatial_Coverage>

<Southernmost_Latitude> -90.0 </Southernmost_Latitude>

<Northernmost_Latitude> 90.0 </Northernmost_Latitude>

<Westernmost_Longitude> -180.0 </Westernmost_Longitude>

<Easternmost_Longitude> 180.0 </Easternmost_Longitude>

</Spatial_Coverage>