METADATA : an introduction

Metadata are data about data. The term refers to any data used to aid the identification, description and location of networked electronic resources.                [IFLA Metadata page]

Metadata describe information objects and give them meaning, context, and organization.                           [RLG digitization workshop]

  

  • Types of metadata
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  • Web-based metadata
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  • What's so important about metadata?
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    Types of metadata

    Pre-electronic:
    Bibliographies, catalogues, book indexes and tables of contents,
         classification schemes
     
    Electronic: 
    Web-based   --  static HTML pages, non-HTML but static pages,
         dynamic pages (e.g., created on the fly from databases)
     
    Non-Web  --  local area networks (Windows NT, Macintosh)  --  directory structures,         icons, file names

     

        Text-based resources: "bibliographic"  

            Non-textual information resources: images, music, sound, numeric, geospatial

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    Web-based metadata

    Metadata schemes:

    MARC (Machine-Readable Cataloguing) Platform for Internet Content Selection (PICS)
    IAFA/WHOIS++ Government Information Locator Service (GILS)
    Dublin Core Meta Content Framework (MCF)

    Markup languages:

    HTML SGML XML

    <META> tag

    		 Text Encoding Initiative header  (TEI) Resource Description Framework (RDF)
      Encoded Archival Description  (EAD) Instructional Management Systems  (IMS)

     

    Object identifiers:   

    Uniform Resource Locator Digital Object Identifier Handle System
    Uniform Resource Name    
    Persistent URL (PURL)    

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    What's so important about metadata?

        Describing information resources: documenting their contents and creation

          Finding information resources: information retrieval

          Managing information resources: keeping track of their status and location

     

    Issues

    Mapping between different types of metadata (interoperability)
     
    Searching software (search engines)
     
    Transmission of metadata:
    embedded in the resource (HTML)
    delivered with the resource
    separated from the resource (database, catalogue, PICS)

     

    More About Metadata

    IFLA page on Metadata Resources         http://www.ifla.org/II/metadata.htm

     

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