Embed Size (px)
Citation preview
The Common Object RegistryKeeping www.statcan.ca visitors in context
Paula Fedeski-KoundakjianInternet Content Manager
Dissemination Division, Statistics [email protected]
The holdings
We have survey metadata for more than 650 surveyshttp://www.statcan.ca/english/sdds/indexa.htm
We have more than 7,500 documents officially releasing survey data and publicationshttp://www.statcan.ca/english/dai-quo/
More holdings
We have some 10,000 publications, products and services in the online catalogue.http://www.statcan.ca/english/search/ips.htm
In CANSIM, we have nearly 2000 detailed tables containing over 18 million series.http://cansim2.statcan.ca/cgi-win/CNSMCGI.EXE
And more holdings
And finally, in Canadian Statistics, we have more than 400 summary tables, most of which are created automatically from CANSIM tables.http://www.statcan.ca/english/Pgdb/
The challenge
When visitors find an item in one data holding, they want to see that item in the context of the others.
Daily release
Link toSurvey information
Link toCanadian Statistics table
Link toPublication
Link toCANSIM tables
The problem
It is impossible to create handmade links among related items because of
the size of our holdings, magnified by duplications;
the huge maintenance task; and the inevitability of error.
The solution
The DailyThe Daily
Online catalogue
Online catalogue
CanadianStatistics
tables
CanadianStatistics
tables
CANSIM tables
CANSIM tables
Surveyinformation
Surveyinformation Common
object registry
Common object registry
What does COR do?
The Daily
CANSIM
Canadian Statistics
Canadian Statistics
The online catalogue
The Daily by subject
Coming soon…
COR links in a redesigned survey metadata interface.
Statistics by Subject: A new website module providing maintenance-free, fully automated access to all the objects in COR by subject (theme and sub-theme).
Automated, maintenance-free links inside HTML publications.
How does COR work?
COR stores only six objects
1. Themes (and sub-themes)
2. Surveys
3. Items in the online catalogue
4. CANSIM tables
5. Canadian Statistics tables
6. Daily releases
COR tracks only two things
Object descriptions (ID, type, and English and French labels)
Relationships (the objects that are related to this one)
Type of object
Object’s labelObject’s ID numberOBJECT’S
DESCRIPTION
OBJECT’S RELATIONSHIPS
WITH OTHER OBJECTS
Holdings teams maintain it
The team responsible for each data holding maintains its own objects in COR the relationships it “owns” in COR
Advantages
The holdings no longer contain external objects, or hyperlinks to external objects.
Work and responsibility are distributed among many people.
Relationships within COR
Surveys
Daily releases Items in
the online catalogue
CANSIM tables
Canadian Statistics
tables
Themes
Sub-themes
Difficulties CORification of data holdings is not simple or quick. The taxonomy must be applied strategically and
uniformly across holdings. Imperfections are inevitable. Registration of Daily releases in COR could not be
done wholesale or retroactively. Data must be in CANSIM for Canadian Statistics
tables to show. COR does not capture all data holdings (data not
available in CANSIM, data in other databases, e.g., Census of Population and Agriculture data).
What’s next
Launch Statistics by Subject in the spring. Create new interfaces for COR output
which are harmonized and have high usability.
Design databases that make COR redundant…
For more information about COR, contact
Marc Pelchat
Head, Applications Development
Dissemination Division
Statistics Canada
(613) 951-4513
