VOEvent query language (SEAP?)

[Frederic V. Hessman]

Here's a discussion which needs to be shifted from the VOEvent/HTN  
workshop crowd to VOEvent:

>>>>> Alasdair:
>>>>> One thing I think we do need to discuss is a Simple Event  
>>>>> Access Protocol (SEAP), in other words a standard way to do an  
>>>>> search into a VOEvent archive. Basically I think we have to do  
>>>>> this before it's done for us...
>>>>>
>>>>> I'd point to,  http://wiki.eurovotech.org/twiki/pub/VOTech/ 
>>>>> DS5PlanningStage05/ECA_votech_120307.ppt

>>>> Rick:
>>>> I confess my general VO archve-searching expertise is limited,  
>>>> but how can we possibly get away with a VOEvent-specific query  
>>>> unless the parser knows how to do all of the more complex VO  
>>>> query gobblety-gook (sure, we do "time" but do we need to re- 
>>>> invent the cone search)?
>
>>> Alasdair:
>>> Because the current stuff doesn't cut it, we basically need to  
>>> query by position, time and concept, amongst other things and  
>>> return ivorns to messages. Basically we have an N-dimensional  
>>> space. None of the current VO archive searching stuff really does  
>>> this in a simple way. We don't necessarily have to reinvent the  
>>> wheel, but we do need to do something.

>> Rick:
>> ... like "invent the wheel"?

> Roy:
> Perhaps we can NOT do the usual VO trick -- i.e. building a complex  
> protocol before there is a need.
> Let us start by listing the reasons WHY somebody would want to  
> "query by position, time and concept".

"Why" is clear in principle but vague in practice.  How about listing  
all the things contained within the documents which we can POSSIBLY  
query:

	- references to other events (simple: we have the ivorn's)
	- references to observatories ("simple": we have STC)
	- references to astronomical objects and positions (classic cone  
plus namespace search?)
	- times in various reference frames ("space-time" cone search?)
	- sometimes very vague concept info using non-standardized syntax  
(random word search?)
	- zillions of potentially unconstrained <Param>'s  and vague RTML  
links (instrumentation; ucd search?)

Hmmm.....

Rick

------------------------------------------------------------------------ 
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Dr. Frederic V. Hessman     Hessman at Astro.physik.Uni-Goettingen.DE
Institut für Astrophysik          Tel.  +49-551-39-5052
Friedrich-Hund-Platz 1         Fax +49-551-39-5043
37077 Goettingen                 Room F04-133
http://www.Astro.physik.Uni-Goettingen.de/~hessman
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