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What is metadata and why is it important?

What is metadata and why is it important?. Norm Friesen, CanCore Initiative normf@athabascau.ca www.cancore.ca. Introduction. Purpose Describe what metadata is Explain its purpose and importance Describe the new CanCore Protocol Norm Friesen, PhD Director, CanCore Initiative

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What is metadata and why is it important?

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  1. What is metadata and why is it important? Norm Friesen, CanCore Initiative normf@athabascau.ca www.cancore.ca

  2. Introduction • Purpose • Describe what metadata is • Explain its purpose and importance • Describe the new CanCore Protocol • Norm Friesen, PhD • Director, CanCore Initiative • Librarian, educator, programmer

  3. Topics of Discussion • Define metadata • What it was: libraries • What it is: IMS; Dublin Core • What it will be: CanCore • Role of Metadata in a repository • Relationship to resources • Relationship to users’ needs

  4. Metadata: Introduction • Definition: • Metadata is “data about data” • Describes and classifies resources that are usually digital

  5. Metadata: Introduction, con’t • Enable discoverability: seamless, single-click access • Multimedia resources • Combined resources • Educational purposes and audiences • Facilitate: • technical interoperability • Administration of materials

  6. Metadata: what it was

  7. Metadata: what it was AGD-7250 Entered: 06/19/1993 Modified: 06/19/1993 Type: a Bib l: m Enc l: Desc: i Ctry: fr Lang: eng Mod: Srce: d Ill: Audience: Form: Cont: Gvt: i Cnf: Fst: Ind: Fic: Bio: Dat tp: s Dates: 1973 Control: 010; ; a 73173237 //r81 $o 39732662 $ 015; ; a F*** $ 020; ; a 9264110569: $c $5.00 (U.S.) $ 039; 0 ; a $f zf $ 040; ; a LC $ 043; ; a f-ti--- $ 049; ; a aeu $b eng $ 050; 0; a HD4353 $b .G74 $ 082; ; a 338.1/0961/1 $ 090; 00; a GOV DOC ZZ EC52 73A36 $b DO $c 1 $ 100; 10; a Grissa, Abdessatar $ 245; 10; a Agricultural policies and employment : $b case study of Tunisia. $ 260; 0 ; a Paris : $b Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, Development Centre ; $a [Washington, D.C. : $b Sales agent OECD Publications Center], $c 1973. $ 300; ; a 216 p. ; $c 24 cm. $ 440; 0; a Development Centre studies. $

  8. Issues for Educational Objects • Electronic format needs to be readable by both machines and humans • Metadata needs to be created by non-librarians • Need to describe educational aspects of resources

  9. Metadata: What it is • Dublin Core Metadata Initiative • 15 Elements; all “core” • No confirmed elements for education • IEEE LOM • 76 Elements • Clear leader in metadata for educational objects

  10. Problems with the LOM • Too few core elements • Too many optional elements • Ambiguities in definitions • No guidelines or interpretations available for implementation • be careful if someone says they’re using IMS for their resources

  11. What it will be; CanCore • Establishes a core of 43 LOM elements • CanCore established for the purposes of sharing data between collections • Will provide guidelines and interpretations that will address ambiguities and facilitate implementation

  12. CanCore Con’t • Is being used in the architecture of the national EduSource projects • Funding and support from: • Netera Alliance • TeleCampus.edu • Electronic Text Centre at UNB • Alberta Learning

  13. CanCore: Benefits • Architecture: Easy sharing of resources across collections • User: Seamless, single-click access to wide variety of resources

  14. Metadata and Resources

  15. CanCore, Con’t • There are degrees of compliance with CanCore (or any metadata standard) • The more of CanCore (elements and guidelines for their use) that can be utilized, the greater the seamlessness of resource use can be expected & greater discoverability

  16. Next Steps • Finalize draft of element descriptions and guidelines • Establish subject vocabularies for K-12, university, and technical institutions in the province • Establish advisory & maintenance roles for metadata

  17. Athabasca Digital Library In a Box Norm Friesen Athabasca University normf@athabascau.ca http://adlib.athabascau.ca

  18. Web Server Software: • Web-based; no software to download/install • Portable, self-contained, linked • Create, store and search metadata • Open Source • Open protocols for sharing records • Browser-independent • Based on open source software • Create XML record, submit to a database, submit to AD LIB

  19. Metadata creation: • Upload or link to resources • Simplified interface based on CanCore best practice recommendations • Future features: • multilingual interface • Customizable appearance • Accessibility for those with disabilities (Section 508, W3C)

  20. Technology: • Front-end: PHP - open source "Hypertext Processor" programming language • Back-end: Object-relational Postgres database • Simplified interface based on CanCore best practices recommendations • Object-oriented, modular, extensible, design • Minimal client side functionality required (no cookies, etc.)

  21. Support: • CANARIE Inc: Canada's Internet Development Organization • The NETERA Alliance • Alberta Learning • Athabasca University

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