[Mapserver-west] organizing spatial data

[Ken-ichi]

Hello all,

I thought I'd ask an open-ended general GIS question: how do you 
organize spatial data?  I know I sort of have a set directory structure 
whenever I start a new GIS project, one largely based on file formats I 
copied from a project I inherited when I first started working with GIS, 
but it's probably not the best.  How do you organize data for your own 
projects, or for multi-user projects?  When you're searching for data on 
a portal, what do you think is the best organizational principle?  Data 
type (vector/raster)?  Theme (transportation, environmental, cultural, 
etc.)?  Sensor?  Location?  Spatial reference system?

-Ken-ichi