Ok, this might seem like a far out request, but . . .

[Bob Basques]

. . . .here goes. (get cup/glass of your favorite beverage)

Has anyone experimented with trying to build a basic mapfile simply by
reading a SHP datasource.

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My situation:

I have just about everything automated for a data custodian to publish
their respective dataset (SHP) through a MAPSERVER install except for
the MAPFILE creation.   The thought was to start with a template of some
sort (similar to a HTML template) and using some REGEX operation to
substitute the source data  piece to come up with a way to initiate a
cursory Mapfile.

The end product to be a basic discorvy mechamism for the MapServer to
use in generating it's own data them configuration files.

Is this out there to far left to think about?

These initial config files would be used by whomever the data custodian
is or the MapServer admin to start up a publishing process.   We have a
couple of different Client built that can be handed the discory
information of a new data theme fairly easily.  The MapServer piece
seems like it might be a bit tricky.

Eventually, we want to move to a WMS distribution process so that this
type of operation make much more sense, but for now it would be intended
as a way to jumpstart a data theme publishing action.

some items that might mitigate something like this would be :

    * The type of theme, POINT, LINE, POLYGON, TEXT, RASTER,etc.  Maybe
      the solution to this is a different template.
    * The source data folder, how to tell MapServer that there is
      something someplace.  We use a Flatfile control that does this
      now.  A HTML interface added on to it would help out I think,
      where a validated theme owner could add in their data theme, even
      uploading of the file could be enabled.  This is for an INTRANET
      at first.
    * How to describe in a discovery process that there is new data to
      distribute.  A getcapabilities request for example.  I suppose a
      Master Mapfile would be needed for this.  We use seperate MapFiles
      for each theme at the moment.  The MapFiles are right alongside of
      the data themes themseleves along with any dependant config file,
      TEMPLATES, SYMBOLS,etc.

I'm sure I'll come up with more stuff as I think about the task some more.

In the end I would like to move as much of the config process as
possible back to the data owners/custodians, and just run the system as
an administrative function.  I can see down the road the notion of
building a simple online MAPFILE editor.

Thanks

bobb