Metadata is "data that provides information about other data".[1] In other words, it is "data about data". Many distinct types of metadata exist, including descriptive metadata, structural metadata, administrative metadata,[2] reference metadata and statistical metadata.[3]
Photographic Metadata Standards are governed by organizations that develop the following standards. They include, but are not limited to:
Photographic Metadata Standards are governed by organizations that develop the following standards. They include, but are not limited to:
Information on the times, origins and destinations of phone calls, electronic messages, instant messages and other modes of telecommunication, as opposed to message content, is another form of metadata. Bulk collection of this call detail record metadata by intelligence agencies has proven controversial after disclosures by Edward Snowden of the fact that certain Intelligence agencies such as the NSA had been (and perhaps still are) keeping online metadata on millions of internet user for up to a year, regardless of whether or not they [ever] were persons of interest to the agency.
Metadata is particularly useful in video, where information about its contents (such as transcripts of conversations and text descriptions of its scenes) is not directly understandable by a computer, but where efficient search of the content is desirable. This is particularly useful in video applications such as Automatic Number Plate Recognition and Vehicle Recognition Identification software, wherein license plate data is saved and used to create reports and alerts.[37] There are two sources in which video metadata is derived: (1) operational gathered metadata, that is information about the content produced, such as the type of equipment, software, date, and location; (2) human-authored metadata, to improve search engine visibility, discoverability, audience engagement, and providing advertising opportunities to video publishers.[38] In today's society most professional video editing software has access to metadata. Avid's MetaSync and Adobe's Bridge are two prime examples of this.Metadata is particularly useful in video, where information about its contents (such as transcripts of conversations and text descriptions of its scenes) is not directly understandable by a computer, but where efficient search of the content is desirable. This is particularly useful in video applications such as Automatic Number Plate Recognition and Vehicle Recognition Identification software, wherein license plate data is saved and used to create reports and alerts.[37] There are two sources in which video metadata is derived: (1) operational gathered metadata, that is information about the content produced, such as the type of equipment, software, date, and location; (2) human-authored metadata, to improve search engine visibility, discoverability, audience engagement, and providing advertising opportunities to video publishers.[38] In today's society most professional video editing software has access to metadata. Avid's MetaSync and Adobe's Bridge are two prime examples of this.[39]
Metadata can be created either by automated information processing or by manual work. Elementary metadata captured by computers can include information about when an object was created, who created
Metadata can be created either by automated information processing or by manual work. Elementary metadata captured by computers can include information about when an object was created, who created it, when it was last updated, file size, and file extension. In this context an object refers to any of the following:
Data virtualization has emerged in the 2000s as the new software technology to complete the virtualization "stack" in the enterprise. Metadata is used in data virtualization servers which are enterprise infrastructure components, alongside database and application servers. Metadata in these servers is saved as persistent repository and describe business objects in various enterprise systems and applications. Structural metadata commonality is also important to support data virtualization.
Standardization and harmonization work has brought advantages to industry efforts to build metadata systems in the statistical community.[41][41][42] Several metadata guidelines and standards such as the European Statistics Code of Practice[43] and ISO 17369:2013 (Statistical Data and Metadata Exchange or SDMX)[41] provide key principles for how businesses, government bodies, and other entities should manage statistical data and metadata. Entities such as Eurostat,[44] European System of Central Banks,[44] and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency[45] have implemented these and other such standards and guidelines with the goal of improving "efficiency when managing statistical business processes."[44]
More recent and specialized instances of library metadata include the establishment of digital libraries including e-print repositories and digital image libraries. While often based on library principles, the focus on non-librarian use, especially in providing me
More recent and specialized instances of library metadata include the establishment of digital libraries including e-print repositories and digital image libraries. While often based on library principles, the focus on non-librarian use, especially in providing metadata, means they do not follow traditional or common cataloging approaches. Given the custom nature of included materials, metadata fields are often specially created e.g. taxonomic classification fields, location fields, keywords or copyright statement. Standard file information such as file size and format are usually automatically included.[47] Library operation has for decades been a key topic in efforts toward international standardization. Standards for metadata in digital libraries include Dublin Core, METS, MODS, DDI, DOI, URN, PREMIS schema, EML, and OAI-PMH. Leading libraries in the world give hints on their metadata standards strategies.[48][49]
Metadata in a museum context is the information that trained cultural documentation specialists, such as archivists, librarians, museum registrars and curators, create to index, structure, describe, identify, or otherwise specify works of art, architecture, cultural objects and their images.[50][51][page needed][52][page needed] Descriptive metadata is most commonly used in museum contexts for object identification and resource recovery purposes.[51]
Metadata is
Metadata is developed and applied within collecting institutions and museums in order to:
Many museums and cultural heritage centers recognize that given the diversity of art works and cultural objects, no single model or standard suffices to describe and catalogue cultural works.[50][51][52] For example, a sculpted Indigenous artifact could be classified as an artwork, an archaeological artifact, or an Indigenous heritage item. The early stages of standardization in archiving, description and cataloging within the museum community began in the late 1990s with the development of standards such as Categories for the Description of Works of Art (CDWA), Spectrum, CIDOC Conceptual Reference Model (CRM), Cataloging Cultural Objects (CCO) and the CDWA Lite XML schema.[51] These standards use HTML and XML markup languages for machine processing, publication and implementation.[51] The Anglo-American Cataloguing Rules (AACR), originally developed for characterizing books, have also been applied to cultural objects, works of art and architecture.[52] Standards, such as the CCO, are integrated within a Museum's Collections Management System (CMS), a database through which museums are able to manage their collections, acquisitions, loans and conservation.[52] Scholars and professionals in the field note that the "quickly evolving landscape of standards and technologies" create challenges for cultural documentarians, specifically non-technically trained professionals.[53][page needed] Most collecting institutions and museums use a relational database to categorize cultural works and their images.[52] Relational databases and metadata work to document and describe the complex relationships amongst cultural objects and multi-faceted works of art, as well as between objects and places, people and artistic movements.[51][52] Relational database structures are also beneficial within collecting institutions and museums because they allow for archivists to make a clear distinction between cultural objects and their images; an unclear distinction could lead to confusing and inaccurate searches.[52]
An object's materiality, function and purpose, as well as the size (e.g., measurements, such as height, width, weight), storage requirements (e.g., climate-controlled environment) and focus of the museum and collection, influence the descriptive depth of the data attributed to the object by cultural documentarians.[52] The established institutional cataloging practices, goals and expertise of cultural documentarians and database structure also influence the information ascribed to cultural objects, and the ways in which cultural objects are categorized.[52] The established institutional cataloging practices, goals and expertise of cultural documentarians and database structure also influence the information ascribed to cultural objects, and the ways in which cultural objects are categorized.[50][52] Additionally, museums often employ standardized commercial collection management software that prescribes and limits the ways in which archivists can describe artworks and cultural objects.[53] As well, collecting institutions and museums use Controlled Vocabularies to describe cultural objects and artworks in their collections.[51][52] Getty Vocabularies and the Library of Congress Controlled Vocabularies are reputable within the museum community and are recommended by CCO standards.[52] Museums are encouraged to use controlled vocabularies that are contextual and relevant to their collections and enhance the functionality of their digital information systems.[51][52] Controlled Vocabularies are beneficial within databases because they provide a high level of consistency, improving resource retrieval.[51][52] Metadata structures, including controlled vocabularies, reflect the ontologies of the systems from which they were created. Often the processes through which cultural objects are described and categorized through metadata in museums do not reflect the perspectives of the maker communities.[50][54]
Metadata has be
Metadata has been instrumental in the creation of digital information systems and archives within museums, and has made it easier for museums to publish digital content online. This has enabled audiences who might not have had access to cultural objects due to geographic or economic barriers to have access to them.[51] In the 2000s, as more museums have adopted archival standards and created intricate databases, discussions about Linked Data between museum databases have come up in the museum, archival and library science communities.[53] Collection Management Systems (CMS) and Digital Asset Management tools can be local or shared systems.[52] Digital Humanities scholars note many benefits of interoperability between museum databases and collections, while also acknowledging the difficulties achieving such interoperability.[53]