Semester 1: Week 3 Reading Blog Post: What is metadata?

Reading / October 07, 2021 / 2 Comments

“Metadata is structured information that describes, explains, locates, or otherwise makes it easier to retrieve, use, or manage an information resource. Metadata is often called data about data or information about information.” - NISO, “Understanding Metadata” For example, the metadata of a document includes information like who the author is, the file size, the date the document was created, and keywords to describe the document. As a Computer Science major, I came across the word metadata in a slightly different light when I was learning about classes and their components (metadata). While I was in class the concept did not click that well but now, I understand better due to the extra research that I have undergone due to my work with Create Caribbean. I now understand what metadata is and how important it is to digital humanists.

The traditional way of library cataloguing used a form of metadata. Metadata can be a collection, a single resource, or merely a part of a bigger project. Metadata can be embedded in a digital object or it can be stored separately. Metadata is often embedded in HTML documents and in the headers of image files. This reduces the chances of the metadata of the object getting misplaced or lost.

There are three (3) types of metadata. These include descriptive, structural and administrative metadata. Descriptive metadata refers to data that describes the main data for discovery and identification purposes. Elements that might be used include the title of the piece, author of the piece, keywords and the abstract. On the other hand, structural metadata refers to data that demonstrates how objects are put together. Finally, administrative metadata refers to information that assists in the management of resources. Administrative metadata is separated into several subgroups two of which include Preservation metadata which would help a person find information needed in the process of archiving and preserving a resource. This is what I will be working on within my most recent project with Create Caribbean. There is also Rights management metadata which involves the rights of intellectual property rights.

Metadata allows allowing resources to be found using different criteria which canteen be used to link resources with similarities and separate those with differences. The resources are more easily categorized with the use of metadata. Furthermore, through the use of metadata, the information on the resource becomes both human and computer-readable.

Metadata schemes which are a set of metadata elements that were designed for a specific reason are used to add structure to the metadata. There is an expected format for the data and it is expected to follow these rules. An example of this is Dublin Core. Some of the elements used in this set include the title, creator(s), description of the resource, the publisher, date of publishing, format, language and identifier. Dublin core is easy to use and is used by collectors and researchers of all different types over a wide range of subjects.

Now that I have been able to fully grasp the concept of metadata I will and already have begun categorizing information I receive in everyday events as data and metadata. This has helped me to better grasp concepts and how I would approach them in a way that would cause me the least amount of stress and anxiety. Through learning about metadata, I have begun seeing the links between different topics and events, also how they could be one small bit of an even bigger occurrence.

NISO, “Understanding Metadata” https://www.lter.uaf.edu/metadata_files/UnderstandingMetadata.pdf