1. A surveillance and sensor application system comprising a metadata database adaptor embodiment as computer executable instructions on a memory of a computing device comprising: at least two applications, including at least one of a surveillance application or a sensor network application, wherein the applications produce metadata messages of varying formats; at least two metadata databases storing the metadata messages of varying formats, and at least two metadata database adaptors associated with the metadata databases and adapting the metadata messages of varying formats according to the needs of their respective databases; an adaptor interface, embodiment as computer executable instructions on a memory of a computing device and executed by a processor, connecting with one or more applications and receiving metadata messages from the applications, wherein the metadata messages describe surveillance data obtained by a surveillance device, wherein the surveillance device monitors a security site to obtain the surveillance data; a metadata database interface connecting with a metadata database device; and one or more functional modules adapting metadata messages of varying formats according to needs of the metadata database, wherein at least one of the functional modules employs a metadata data model template that allows a user to define a data definition that is used to map user defined data with the metadata data model template and form XML data schema so that template mapping knowledge can then be applied for fast XML data schema to non-XML database schema generation without translation processing, wherein at least one of the functional modules utilizes metadata data model template to operate the metadata database device to generate the non-XML database schema; and wherein at least on of the functional modules employs an application domain template that allows the user to define a query definition that can then be processed with a mapping of the application domain template to translate a query of a first query language to a database query of a second query language.