Hypermap registry: an open source, standards-based geospatial registry and search platform

On the web there is a large number of useful geospatial datasets available, exposed via web map services using open standards or open protocols. Just as web search engines enable users to reliably search and find relevant documents, a similar capability is needed to return the most useful and reliable geospatial datasets. Hypermap Registry is an open source platform, developed by the Center for Geographic Analysis (CGA) of Harvard University, which attempts to address the general problem of geospatial data search and discovery.