XML Web Services: Region 5 and Great Lakes Program

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XML Web Services Region 5 and Great Lakes Program

• Brand Niemann
• XML Web Services Evangelist
• Data Standards Branch
• March 11, 2002

Disclaimer Any reference to or depiction of the
commercial product of any vendor is for
illustrative purposes only and does not
constitute an endorsement by EPA or the trainer.
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Overview

• 1. Background
• 2. Legacy Content
• 3. Some New Content Innovations
• 4. Integration and Work Flow
• 5. Exchange Network
• 6. Questions and Answers
• 7. Contact Information

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1. Background

• Ohio River Basin Energy Study (ORBES), EPA
  Contractor, University of Illinois -
  Champaign-Urbana, and EPA Office of Research and
  Development, 1976-1983.
• US-Canada Transboundary Air Pollution Transport
  (Acid Rain) Working Group, EPA Office of Research
  and Development, 1983-1990.
• Worked with Region 5 and Mid-west States Content
  in the EPA Center for Environmental Information
  and Statistics, Digital Library of the State of
  the Environment, 1997-1999.
• Office of Environmental Information XML Web
  Services Training
• Region 5 State/EPA Information Managers Meeting,
  October 30-31, 2001, Chicago, Illinois.
• Region 7 State/EPA, Information Managers Meeting,
  December 19-20, 2001,Kansas City, Kansas.
• Region 3 Mid-Atlantic States Information Managers
  MeetingFebruary, 27-28, 2002, Philadelphia,
  Pennsylvania.

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2. Legacy Content

• 2.1 Center for Environmental Information and
  Statistics, Digital Library of the State of the
  Environment (Infobases)
• 30 Years of Environmental Progress Region 5
• Great Lakes Atlas 3rd Edition
• State of Great Lakes 1995
• Indiana State of the Environment Report 1999 and
  1998
• Wisconsins Environment 1970-1995
• 2.2 LivePublish Uses of XML

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2.1 Legacy Content CEISPDF Graphics to Infobase
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2. Legacy Content CEISPDF Text to Infobase
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2. Legacy Content CEISLivePublish Site
Administrator
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2. Legacy Content CEISLivePublish Web Server
Interface
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2. Legacy Content CEISLivePublish Web Server
Advanced Search
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2. Legacy Content CEISLivePublish Web Server
Search Results
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2. Legacy Content CEISLivePublish Web Server
Search Results
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2.2 LivePublish Uses of XML

• Serve up native XML.
• Convert XML to HTML using a CSS or XSL at run
  time using the Display Filter API.
• Convert XML to HTML at build time.
• Uses an XML-based file to define site look and
  feel.
• The build Makefiles are XML files that define the
  structure and contents of the information
  collections.
• XML-based legacy conversion tools simplify the
  conversion of existing content into HTML.
• Indexsheets (XIL) define and control the indexing
  of content like stylesheets (XSL) define and
  control the formatting (see separate handout).

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3. Some New Content Innovations

• 3.1 XML Web Services Standards Stack
• 3.2 NXT 3 e-Content Network P2P Platform and
  Tools
• 3.3 Example Content
• 3.3.1 EPA
• Major Environmental Laws
• 3.3.2 Region 5
• RODS and Atlas of Biodiversity (PDF NXT 3.3)
• Publications
• Fields
• 3.3.3 Great Lakes
• Atlas
• GLIN
• 3.4 State Partner Agencies
• See next slide

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3. Some New Content Innovations

• 3.4 State Partner Agencies
• Illinois
• Environmental Progress
• Forms
• Annual Reports
• Indiana
• Publications and Forms
• SOER (Infobases)
• Michigan
• SOER and Indicators
• Minnesota
• Environment Newsletter
• Ohio
• Publications
• Wisconsin
• Publications and Forms
• SOER (Infobases)

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3.1 XML Web Services Standards Stack
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3.2 NXT 3 e-Content Network P2P Platform

• NXT 3 has been delivering XML Web Services since
  July 2000 based on an early SOAP recommendations
  before SOAP became a standard.
• NextPage is developing full support for SOAP,
  WSDL, and UDDI standards and conforming Web
  service frameworks such as .Net and Sun One
  (Java).
• Basic XML Web services provides low-level
  communication and NXT 3 provides high-level data
  coordination when intelligent evaluation of
  distributed content and collaborative
  capabilities in the context of business processes
  is needed (just released Matrix).

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3.2 NXT 3 e-Content Network P2P Platform

• Folders can contains files, databases, and Web
  resources.
• Folders can/should be on different Web servers,
  but look and function as though they are on the
  same Web server.
• This is accomplished by two new XML-based
  standards that send lean XML messages between the
  Web servers
• Content Network Protocol (CNP)
• eXtensible Indexing Language (XIL)
• Distributed folders and nodes can be managed both
  centrally and locally by the Content Network
  Manager and the Manage Content Administration
  Tools.

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3.2 NXT 3 Content Network Manager
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3.2 NXT 3 Logs and Statistics
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3.3.1 EPA Major Environmental Laws
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3.3.2 Region 5 RODS
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3.3.2 Region 5 RODS
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3.3.2 Region 5 RODS
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3.3.2 Region 5 RODS
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3.3.3 Great Lakes
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3.4 State Partner Agencies
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4. Integration and Work Flow

• 4.1 Integration
• Desktop Files (Word, PDF, Excel, etc.).
• Large Structured Documents.
• Structured Web Content.
• Relational Databases.
• 4.2 Work Flow
• Folder structure, interlinking, and special
  queries.
• See Tax Analysts Federal Research Library for the
  results of more time spend with more content
  collections, structuring, interlinking, and
  special queries across content collections.

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5. Exchange Network

• Different content, integration, and work flow on
  separate servers (simulated on laptop for OSWER
  Superfund Program!)
• 5.1 SEDD for Web-based XML Data Collection.
• 5.2 LivePublish Server Web Service Node.
• 5.3 NXT 3 Server Web Service Node (also the
  Integrator Node or Portal of the Exchange
  Network).
• 5.4 Peer-to-Peer Architecture and Hierarchical
  Peer-to-Peer Architecture.
• Only Public Superfund data and information are
  being used in this pilot work!

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5.1 SEDD for Web-based XML Data Collection
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5.2 LivePublish Server Web Service Node
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5.3 NXT 3 Server Web Service Node
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5.4 Peer-to-Peer Architecture for the Exchange
Network of Services and Stewardship
The outer nodes are desktops and portable devices
with specialized Services and Applications.
The inner nodes are servers with State, Regional
and National Services and Applications.
At least one of the inner nodes is also the
Integrator Node with the directory and metadata
functions.
Key Both Client Server Nodes (all circles)
This is called a peer-to-peer Web Services
architecture where every node can communicate
with every other node using SOAP (the XML
Protocol).
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5.4 Hierarchical Peer-to-Peer Architecture for
the Exchange Network of Services and Stewardship
This is the way that most enterprises start
with an Exchange Network.
Key Client Nodes (outer circles) Server Nodes
(inner circles)
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6. Questions and Answers

• Help develop grant proposals and nodes?
• Help xml-ize selected content?
• Help develop multi-channel communications with
  XML like VoiceXML?
• Help with integrated distributed live state of
  the environment reporting and strategic planning
  with data and information?
• Help with GML applications?

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7. Contact Information

• Brand Niemann. Ph.D.
• USEPA Headquarters, EPA West, Room 6143D
• Office of Environmental Information, MC 2822T
• 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Washington, DC
  20460
• 202-566-1657
• niemann.brand_at_epa.gov
• EPA http//161.80.70.167
• Outside EPA http//130.11.44.140