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Geographic Information Systems (GIS) are data-centric applications that rely on the input and constant maintenance of large quantities of basic and thematic spatial data in order to be useful tools for decision- making. This chapter presents the institutional collaboration framework and the major technology components to facilitate discovery and sharing of spatial data: Spatial Data Infrastructures (SDI). We review the essential software components –metadata editors and associated catalogue services, spatial data content repositories, client applications, and middleware or intermediate geospatial services– that define SDIs as heterogeneous distributed information systems. Finally we highlight future research needs in the areas of semantic interoperability of SDI services and in improved institutional collaboration.

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