Lessons Learned from Building a Web-Based Spatial Data Discovery Facility

This paper discusses the lessons learned and decisions made while designing and developing a web-based application for the National Spatial Information Framework (NSIF) of South Africa. The NSIF provides the parameters for a coherent national spatial data infrastructure and promotes the utilization of spatial information in South Africa. The application that was developed for the NSIF, the Spatial Data Discovery Facility (SDDF), is a web based application that allows users to discover the location and/or existence of spatial data. The design was based on a three tier architecture. During development the authors had to face the challenges of limited budgets, working with different web browsers, interfacing with the user and speeding up the "World Wide Wait".