The Open GIS Consortium has defined interoperability standards for getting mapping applications to communicate and share data with one another. AGRC has implemented WMS compliant services for imagery layers and will be  doing so for cached maps of vector data in the next few months.

The Utah Division of Water Rights runs several web-based interactive maps that use the open spource UMN MapServer software. MapServer is capable of consuming WMS compliant map services and is doing so display SGID data on its interactive web-based maps. Other free WMS clients are available that allow GIS users (ex. GAIA , ArcGIS Explorer, etc ) to connect directly and view WMS layers using just a simple connection string.

First, a little background from the the Open GIS Consortium website: http://www.opengeospatial.org/standards/wms

• The Open GIS Consortium’s Web Map Service (WMS) implementation specification provides three basic operations (GetCapabilities, GetMap, and GetFeatureInfo) in support of the creation and display of registered and superimposed map-like views of information that can come simultaneously from multiple remote and heterogeneous sources.
• When client and server software implements WMS, any client can access maps from any server. Any client can combine maps (overlay them like clear acetate sheets) from one or more servers. Any client can query information from a map provided by any server. While programmers need to write code to implement the specifications, end users can take advantage of products that include them to publish and access geospatial information. Software buyers can choose the best solution for their needs and not worry about if it will work with other solutions; if they all implement the same standard, WMS, they will all work together.
• In the particular WMS specification defines: 
  

1. How to request and provide a map as a picture or set of features (GetMap)
   
2. How to get and provide information about the content of a map such as the value of a feature at a location (GetFeatureInfo)
3. How to get and provide information about what types of maps a server can deliver (GetCapabilities) .

Now, here are the examples for Minnesota MapServer layer definitions that utilize data from the Utah SGID data. The syntax includes the MapServer layer definition parameters and the simple CONNECTION string that calles the Utah SGID WMS for data.

LAYER # UAO Imagery from a Utah SGID WMS Service

     NAME 'uao'

     STATUS OFF

     TYPE RASTER

     CONNECTIONTYPE WMS

     CONNECTION

      "http://mapserv.utah.gov/arcgis/services/CacheImagery/MapServer/WMSServer?

          REQUEST=GetMap&SERVICE=WMS&VERSION=1.1.1&LAYERS=

          0&STYLES=0&FORMAT=image/png" 

     METADATA

             "wms_name" "UAO2003"

             "wms_srs"   "EPSG:26912"

             wms_server_version "1.1.1"

             wms_format  "image/jpeg"

     END

     PROJECTION

             "init=epsg:26912"

     END

  END

  LAYER  #NAIP 2006 Imagery from a Utah SGID WMS Service

     NAME 'naip'

     STATUS OFF

     TYPE RASTER

     CONNECTIONTYPE WMS

     CONNECTION     

         http://mapserv.utah.gov/arcgis/services/CacheImagery/MapServer/WMSServer?

              REQUEST=GetMap&SERVICE=WMS&VERSION=1.1.1&LAYERS=0&STYLES=

              0&FORMAT=image/png"

     METADATA

            "wms_name" "NAIP2006"

            "wms_srs"   "EPSG:26912"

            wms_server_version "1.1.1"

            wms_format  "image/jpeg"

            END

     PROJECTION

            "init=epsg:26912"

     END

  END

LAYER  #Example of connecting to data from the SDE, NOT A WMS Service

      NAME 'SGID.U024.Municipalities'

      GROUP 'SGID.U024.Municipalities'

      CONNECTIONTYPE PLUGIN

      CONNECTION 'agrc.state.ut.us,port:5151,SGID,agrc,agrc'

      PLUGIN "d:/wrtdata/public/cgi-bin/msplugin_sde_92.dll" 

      DATA 'SGID.U024.Municipalities,Shape,SDE.DEFAULT'

      PROJECTION

               "init=epsg:26912"

      END #end projection

      METADATA

                "queryable" "true"

                "ows_title" "SGID.U024.Municipalities"

                "ows_abstract" ""

                "ows_keywordlist" ""

                "wms_extent" "198460.1689 4051438.6049 700984.9628 4697524.2588"

                "wms_metadataurl_type" "TC211"

                "wms_dataurl_format" "text/html"

                "wms_dataurl_href"

                  "http://www.yourorganization.org/geonetwork/srv/en/metadata.show?id="

                "wms_style_default_title" "default"

                "wms_format" "image/png"

                "ows_srs" "EPSG:26912"

                "wms_attribution_onlineresource" "http://www.yourorganization.org/"

                "wms_attribution_title" "Data from Your Organization"

                "wms_attribution_logourl_width" "20"

                "wms_attribution_logourl_height" "20"

                "wms_attribution_logourl_format" "image/jpg"

                "wms_attribution_logourl_href"          

                  "http://www.yourorganization.org/geonetwork/images/very_small_logo.jpg"

      END #end metadata

      TYPE polygon

      STATUS ON

      TOLERANCE 8 #default is 3 for raster, 0 for vector

      #TOLERANCEUNITS meters #default is meters, [pixels|feet|inches|kilometers|meters|miles|dd]

      class

              STYLE

                     OUTLINECOLOR 110 110 110

              END #end style

      end

END #end layer