A metadata entry/management approach by DAM News Staff

January 10, 2011

: Image via Wikipedia

Metadata is traditionally defined as “data about data”. It’s a definition, but not a very helpful one to understand why you need metadata when dealing with digital content. Here’s a better one: “Metadata is structured information that is created specifically to describe another resource.” In this piece I’m taking you through the many uses of metadata, which can make managing digital publishing more efficient and effective.

Metadata provides basic information of an item — aka a digital asset — including the author, the date of creation, the approval status, the publishing state, the subject matter, the exposure time, etc, etc. It can be compared to a library catalogue record that facilitates discovery of a particular work by providing information such as title, author, publisher, subject, description of the work, location, etc, but it can also be used as a ‘hook’ for another system to integrate with.

Metadata has always been important in libraries, hence its strong presence in library sciences. Nowadays, its importance is hard to overestimate in publishing processes, and more importantly those processes that output to online media. The interconnectivity offered by the World Wide Web enables new opportunities for improved and more creative communication and collaboration, the sharing of experience and knowledge among individuals from different disciplines, and the invention of new methods to support business activities and provide services.

Continues @http://it-enquirer.com