query language for netCDF

• To: netcdfgroup@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx (Group NetCDF)
• Subject: query language for netCDF
• From: jhudd@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx (John Huddleston)
• Date: Thu, 23 Feb 1995 08:26:37 -0700 (MST)

To the netCDF group,

In 1993, members of our office and I met with
Russ Rew to determine if netCDF would be useful
for storing time series data.   I had programmed
a custom built data base to store five (5) gigabytes
of online NCDC daily climatic data and while it
was efficient in both storage and retrieval, data
could not be read across diverse hardware platforms.

Since that time we have begun to use netCDF in three
different projects.  At the time we met with Russ,
I asked if anyone had written an SQL interface for
netCDF.  Russ's answer was no, because netCDF is not
a relational data base.

The intent of the question was whether anyone had
a "lookalike" SQL interface.  Two of our projects
have SQL syntax in functions for retrieving data
from Informix.  We do not want to rewrite that code,
rather, it would be expediant to create a library
interface that will parse the SELECT statements for
the retrieval of netCDF data.

We have begun writing the functional specifications
for the netCDF SQL (libnsql.a) library, and I have
written an SQL parser.  I am very experienced at ESQL/C
code and Informix structures but not other DBMSs.
At this point in the design of the functional
specifications, it would be worthwhile to get input
from the netCDF community.  

Let me know your thoughts/ideas.  Implementation 
ideas/details are also welcome.


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