PgMetadata is made for people using QGIS as their main GIS application, and PostgreSQL as their main vector data storage.

The layers metadata are stored inside your PostgreSQL database, in a dedicated schema. Classical fields are supported, such as the title, description, categories, themes, links, and the spatial properties of your data.

PgMetadata is not designed as a catalog application which lets you search among datasets and then download the data. It is designed to ease the use of the metadata inside QGIS, allowing to search for a data and open the corresponding layer, or to view the metadata of the already loaded PostgreSQL layers.

By storing the metadata of the vector tables inside the database:

• QGIS can read the metadata easily by using the layer PostgreSQL connection: a dock panel shows the metadata for the active layer when the plugin detects metadata exists for this QGIS layer.
• QGIS can run SQL queries: you can use the QGIS locator search bar to search for a layer, and load it easily in your project.

The administrator in charge of editing the metadata will also benefit from the PostgreSQL storage:

• PostgreSQL/PostGIS functions are used to automatically update some fields based on the table data (the layer extent, geometry type, feature count, projection, etc.).
• The metadata is saved with your data anytime you backup the database
• You do not need to share XML files across the network or install a new catalog application to manage your metadata and allow the users to get it.

The plugin contains some processing algorithms to help the administrator. For example:

• a script helps to create or update the needed "pgmetadata" PostgreSQL schema and tables in your database
• a algorithm creates a QGIS project suitable for the metadata editing. This project uses the power of QGIS to create a rich user interface allowing to edit your metadata easily (forms, relations). Why use another interface when QGIS rocks ?

More PgMetadata features will be shown during the presentation:

• Modification of the template to tune the displayed metadata
• Export a metadata dataset to PDF, HTML or DCAT
• Publish the metadata as a DCAT catalog with Lizmap Web Client module for PgMetadata. It can then be harvested by external applications (Geonetwork, CKAN)
• The data model is very close to the QGIS metadata storage and the DCAT vocabulary for compatibility.