2007-07-07: KML Exporter/Enhancer Bugs
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This page includes a listing of the various "bugs" or "issues" resulting from the new software tool (official name: TBD) designed to facilitate the export of "dressed-up" data from datafed.net and this Wiki to Google Earth.
Primary Bug Catchers:
- Sandor "I'm going to need a bigger net..." Kovacs
- Mark "insert cool insect-related nickname here" Kieffer
Additional Bug Catchers:
- Erin "Ewwwwww...yuck!" Robinson
- Rudy "What the heck is that thing?" Husar
Bug Squasher:
- Kari "Venus Flytrap" Hoijarvi
Contents |
[edit] Overview
[edit] A Summary of Saturday's Events
Kari the Magnificent, along with his apprentices Sandor and Mark, have created a programming environment enabling addition of metadata to data from DataFed's viewer for export to Google Earth. In addition to incorporating preformatted (default) metadata organized thru .xsl stylesheets, this application also enables the user to enter his or her own metadata in the form of HTML or XML and will export it to a "dressed-up" KML. (This assumes, of course, that the paths and settings are correct, and the user presses the buttons in the right order...see below) Currently, this represents a great step forward in the ultimate goal of mashing DataFed and Google Earth. However, there are a few issues to improve, including simplifying the user interface and expanding its capabilities (such as adding the ability to construct multi-layer KML documents, and incorporating the time dimension to create animations). The following section describes the preliminary issues that were discovered when attempting to use the application for the first time...
[edit] Bugs Caught
[edit] Datafed Export-type bugs
- Changing the coordinates of the bounding box in the text field does not change the boundaries of the image to be overlaid. First seen when using the "view state" call.
- Hypothesis: Presumably due to the reliance on the view call to cached images. A "more-permanent" method should be employed to ensure the images do not disappear after a few days, such as defaulting to a WMS call.
- When the application is called from the WMS screen (by pressing the Google Earth link there) the RDF URL is not preloaded into the Feed field.
- A change in the Data URL in WMS mode (such as changing the date) enables an Update KML Link to result in a new KML file, however, if any changes are made to the stylesheets already loaded and previously included by pressing the Update KML Link before pressing this Update KML Link button for a second time (such as the case before where the date was changed), they are not inherited.
[edit] KML-type bugs
- The order for the layers within the KML should be DataSet layer, Provider Info layer, and DataFed Info layer. Currently, the last two layers are reversed, however, this can easily be corrected by switching the default locations of the "DefaultDataFedInfo.xsl" and "DefaultProviderInfo.xsl" stylesheets in the existing application, so that Provider appears before DataFed.
- Not so much a bug, more of an opportunity: There are currently two ways of importing descriptive HTML data:
- As HTML into an existing <description> tag. This is how the data layer's metadata is added.
- As an XML snippet containing KML tags for a new overlay object and HTML within that new object's <description> tag. This is how the Provider Logo and DataFed Logo screen overlays are created.
It is desirable to be able to add additional "blank" layers so that HTML descriptions may be added there as well, in order to narrate a story.
[edit] Stylesheet-type bugs
- Default stylesheet for data layer description is "ProviderInfo.xsl" instead of "4thGenDesc8.xsl" (the current iteration of the stylesheet). Once all of the final stylesheets are agreed upon, they can be renamed something relevant (that is, simple) and set as the defaults.
[edit] General Issues
- Update KML Link button can only be pressed once. Okay, maybe not so important at first, but good to know nonetheless!
- Example: If the stylesheets are loaded one at a time, pressing the Update KML Link button between each, then only the first stylesheet appears as expected. If three stylesheets are all loaded in first, and then the Update KML Link button is pressed, then all three descriptions appear as expected.
- Once Export to Google Earth button has been pushed once, any further changes (i.e. loading of new stylesheets) do not take effect, despite pressing Execute or Update KML Link buttons. In fact, if a new, different Google Earth document is desired, the entire window must be closed and opened from the Google Earth button in the DataFed Viewer.
- Edits/revisions/changes to HTML or XML code within the "document" fields are not transferred to the final KML if the Update KML Link button has been pressed. The first text box allows insertion of customized HTML into the data layer description (following the path specifed in the Insert Path field) if the new code is pasted in before the Update KML Link button is pressed.
[edit] Bugs Squashed
--none yet--
Categories: DevEvents | Atomic | Yymmdd | GoogleEarth
