Proposal

I’d like to propose, to Executive Committee, the creation of a new 
Working Group on VO implementation:

Mission:

The Implementation WG will produce the information needed by Executive 
Committee so that Executive Committee is able to facilitate the 
international coordination between national VO organizations necessary 
to accelerate the realization of an operational international VO that is 
widely used by astronomers.

Mandate: To establish an international Working Group that will:

1) Monitor, evaluate, and report on implementations of VO standards and 
protocols
2) Interact with implementers to understand successes and challenges 
involved with producing services using VO standards and protocols
3) Arrange for astronomers to evaluate VO services and comment and make 
recommendations.
4) Compile statistics on usage of VO-based services and report back to Exec.
5) Produce an annual status report on VO implementation of IVOA 
standards (and other related developments)
6) Produce proposals to Executive Committee recommending specific 
actions to improve the success of the IVOA

What actions can Exec Take in response to these reports?

1) Use the reports to guide future development and to focus our effort 
where it produces the most benefit to astronomers.
2) Identify areas where IVOA standards and documentation could be 
improved to make implementation easier
3) Identify areas where shared software would help implementers.
4) Help coordinate on an international level the implementations 
(services and data collections) by national projects to maximize benefit 
to astronomers


David Schade