Metadata

ESM 261
Fall 2007
James Frew

[single page] [slide show]

What's "Metadata"?

"data about the content, quality, condition, … of data" - FGDC Digital Geospatial Metadata Content Standards

Context

Connections

Data or Metadata?

 

Data

  • Abstract: text
  • Purpose: text
  • Spatial Domain: {W,E} lon, {N,S} lat
  • Network Resource: text
 

Metadata (FGDC)

  • Abstract: data set narrative summary
  • Purpose: why data set was developed
  • Spatial Domain: geographic areal domain of data set
  • Network Resource: data set URL

Kinds of Metadata

 

Structural

  • organization
    • simple types
    • structured types
  • packaging
    • formats
 

Source

  • origin
    • person
    • organization
  • lineage
    • processing history
  • quality
    • precision
    • accuracy

Kinds of Metadata (cont'd)

 

Annotation

  • abstracts
  • references
  • user feedback
 

Availability

  • restrictions
    • proprietary
    • security
  • access
    • handle
      • online: e.g. URL
      • offline: e.g. ISBN
    • point-of-contact

Some Metadata Idioms

 

Control document reference

  • format description
  • compilation protocol
  • accuracy standard

Point of contact

  • name
  • address
 

Date

  • single
  • multiple
  • range

Geolocation

  • lat, lon, datum
  • x, y, {projection}

Hierarchical Metadata

Most metadata schemes are hierarchical:

Readings and Examples: Metadata

 

Federal Geographic Data Committee (FGDC)

 

NASA Global Change Master Directory (GCMD)

Dublin Core Metadata Initiative

"OPeNDAP: Acessing data in a heterogeneous environment" [PDF], sections 4 and 5 on kinds of metadata