Permaculture Database

["Lawrence F. London, Jr." <lfl@intrex.net>]

-------- Original Message --------
Subject: Re: [permaculture] database, wiki, blogs, forums, etc
Date: Thu, 14 Dec 2006 22:09:14 -0800
From: Paul Cereghino <paul.cereghino@comcast.net>
Reply-To: permaculture <permaculture@lists.ibiblio.org>


I think you should go for it... but heed Jedd, creep slowly... this
sounds like a potential project mangement nightmare... once you start
populating the RDB you get locked in.. most databased fail for lack of
conceptual design. You need to fully conceive and test the structure of
your information before you open the flood gates.
I think I get what you are talking about -- but don't know much about
RDB... what about something more conceptual like:

tbl_element: (element_id, element_name, element_family (lookup),
tbl_elementattribute_link (element_id, attribute_id)
tbl_attribute (attribute_id)
tbl_attribute linkage (attribute1_id, attribute2_id, l

elements are physical components of a system (i.e. wind tower, chicken,
worm box, absorbtionswale, building wall, building roof). They would
have to be clearly defined, explicit, mutually exclusive. You'd have to
be able to split elements that got to loaded... for example, swale
becomes, absorbtion swales vs. diversion drains vs. drainage ditches, etc.
Are individual species elements?! this would go too far perhaps... maybe
functional groups are better. How could designers interact that are in
different climates... what if elements have different attributes based
on climate?! You could have biome independant attributes and biome
dependant attributes or you could just qualify linkages
It would have to be a nested taxonomy of elements... there are
relationships between 'building' attributes and other elements... then
there is 'metal roof' vs. 'living roof' vs. 'brick wall'...

design elements have attributes attributes, there are different types of
attributes,
beneficial inputs (element process improves)
processes (element does some function/work/process)
outputs (element produces output)
contraints (element doesn't function in presence of condition)

elements have multiple attributes, attributes create linkages between
design elements. You could search for potential linkages be looking for
similar attributes where one is an input and the other an output. You
could search for contraindications by avoiding outputs and constraint
similarities.

Y'know... even just developing the element input/output analysis
collectively would have tremendous value... and that could be done by
simply aggressively structuring an existing Wiki. Fleshing out a range
of elements in terms of their permaculturally significant attributes
would be a good preliminary exercise to better define the nature of the
data structure that would be of service.

Paul