There is an increasing degree of sophistication associated with describing the qualities of spatial data. Completeness is one data quality component that is included in both the US Spatial Data Transfer Standard (SDTS) and the European standard under development within the framework of the European Committee for Standardisation (CEN). While both standards use the same term, there are apparent semantic differences reflected in their definitions and proposed ways for assessment and reporting. This paper will discuss these differences and their implications using the global 1:1 million scale Digital Chart of the World (DCW) database as a test case.

Tags: data