metadata Structured information used to describe information resources/objects for a variety of purposes. Although AACR2/MARC cataloging is formally metadata, the term is generally used in the library community for nontraditional schemes such as the Dublin Core Metadata Element Set, the VRA Core Categories, or the Encoded Archival Description (EAD). Metadata can be categorized as descriptive, structural, and administrative. Descriptive metadata facilitates discovery, identification, and selection. Structural metadata describes the internal structure of complex objects. Administrative metadata aids in the management of resources and may include rights management metadata, preservation metadata, and technical metadata describing the physical characteristics of a resource. For an introduction to metadata, please see Priscilla Caplan's Metadata Fundamentals for All Librarians (American Library Association, 2003). Also spelled meta-data. See also: Metadata Encoding and Transmission Standard and Metadata Object Description Schema. metadatabase A database of databases, usually formed by aggregating two or more smaller databases to allow the user to search their contents as a whole, instead of repeating the same search in each separately (example: OneFile from Gale Group, which consolidates the InfoTrac bibliographic databases into a single, very large finding tool). The pace of aggregation has accelerated as very large vendors have dominated the market for access to periodical databases, but however helpful "one-stop searching" may be in interdisciplinary research (and to users who lack the skill to select the optimum databases for a specialized topic), segmentation still offers significant advantages for the experienced researcher. Metadata Encoding and Transmission Standard (METS) An XML schema for encoding descriptive, structural, and administrative metadata for digital objects. METS can be used to facilitate the standardized exchange of digital objects between repositories, the development of common presentation utilities, and the archiving of digital objects. METS was developed by the Digital Library Federation and is maintained by the Library of Congress with the advice of the METS Editorial Board. Click here to learn more about METS. Metadata Object Description Schema (MODS) An XML schema developed by the Library of Congress for representing MARC-like semantics in the XML markup language. MODS can be used to carry selected data from MARC21 records or for creating original resource description records according to a specification richer than Dublin Core but less complex than full MARC. MODS cannot be used for the conversion of MARC to XML without loss of data (MARCXML was designed for that purpose). Click here to learn more about MODS. Doaa
|