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<P style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: Tahoma; FONT-SIZE: 10pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt"><STRONG>Understanding Spatial Data Usability<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" /><o:p></o:p></STRONG></SPAN></P>
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<P style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: Tahoma; FONT-SIZE: 10pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 8pt" size=1>Gary J. Hunter1), Monica Wachowicz2) and Arnold K. Bregt2) <o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></P>
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<P style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: Tahoma; FONT-SIZE: 10pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt"><FONT size=1>1) Department of Geomatics, University of Melbourne</FONT></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: Tahoma; FONT-SIZE: 10pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt"><FONT size=1>2) Centre for Geo-Information</FONT></SPAN></P><BR>In recent geographical information science literature, a number of researchers have made passing reference to an apparently new characteristic of spatial data known as 'usability'. While this attribute is well-known to professionals engaged in software engineering and computer interface design and testing, extension of the concept to embrace information would seem to be a new development. Furthermore, while notions such as the use and value of spatial information, and the diffusion of spatial information systems, have been the subject of research since the late-1980s, the current references to usability clearly represent something which extends well beyond that initial research. Accordingly, the purposes of this paper are: (1) to understand what is meant by spatial data usability; (2) to identify the elements that might comprise usability; and (3) to consider what the related research questions might be.<BR><BR><BR><BR> </body>
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