Analyzing Requirements IMT 589 January 21, 2006

1/21/2006IMT589- Applied and Structural Metadata2 Scoping Decide who your metadata beneficiaries (customers) will be People Tools Applications Other metadata stores Decide what you are trying to accomplish with your metadata system

1/21/2006IMT589- Applied and Structural Metadata3 Gathering Requirements Identify beneficiaries Determine the source of the metadata Plan preliminary architecture Recategorize metadata Build a metamodel Consider access and display of metadata Anticipate metadata processing Consider nonmetadata requirements

1/21/2006IMT589- Applied and Structural Metadata4 Building Taxonomies Identify business needs _______ User needs survey Tag audit Content audit Collect/ structure terms ________ Build vocabs Define rules Create change control process Tag content ________ Embed vocab access in tools Provide guidelines for use Expose Content ________ Embed tags in interfaces Segment content by attributes Enable thru XML/XSL Define needed attributes _______ Build object model Provide mapping schema?

1/21/2006IMT589- Applied and Structural Metadata5 PAComputing- The Challenge Deployed base of 47,000 computers dependent on phone support, which was going away Needed to capture technical information in a way that steered users to the right answers for their machines Most users were not aware of model or characteristics, but they knew what state they lived in

1/21/2006IMT589- Applied and Structural Metadata6 The Approach Define audience characteristics Base metadata on known needs from past technical support history Use metadata to drive users to appropriate technical information without their knowledge Build website navigation with the metadata

1/21/2006IMT589- Applied and Structural Metadata7 Sample User Profile Edgar Library System Network Administrator Who is Edgar? Edgar, the principle computer technician for a medium-sized library system, is good at dial-up connections, but he's just getting acquainted with cable, ISDN, DSL, frame-relay, server security, and wireless connections. With a background in library science, he has supplemented his out-of-date technology education with some community college courses in networking, but most of what he knows he learned on the job. His library was a leader in developing a system-wide Web presence, but smaller buildings have not generally contributed much content, despite his coaxings. Quotations ”I can't wait to get my hands on these Gates machines. Supposedly they are completely bombproof. We'll see about that..." "If we just let staff publish anything they want on the system Web site, chaos will reign." "Sure, I'll get that done for you. Just give me another 20 hours in the day."

1/21/2006IMT589- Applied and Structural Metadata8 Sample User Profile (cont.) Current Status Edgar provides library staff with limited training in addition to his main technical support role, and would like to help motivated staff from smaller buildings contribute to organized Web development efforts, but he's hesitant to turn over administrative control to building-level staff. Some librarians have been asking about moving to faster connections, collaborating with other community organizations on Web projects, and enhancing the library network, but Edgar doesn't know exactly how to provide this with the resources he currently has in place. People keep asking him about filtering and security, so he's started researching these issues, but he hasn't had time to explore all the options. Edgar wants to implement more remote network administration solutions, but he hasn't had time to figure out how to integrate the various services. Target Status Edgar offers a broader range of network and Web services, filtering/proxy services, and technical support to the libraries in his system. He uses new technology to practice more efficient administration, which gives him more time to keep up to date on current technology practices in libraries everywhere. He discovers ways to trade publicity and services for the library in return for free Web hosting for non-profits in the community. Critical Barriers Lack of technology skills, esp. Foundation model; Lack of knowledge of broadband technologies; Lack of web hosting/site construction knowledge; Lack of funding for new equipment; Little knowledge of automation systems, filtering, security, or proxy server; Not enough staff resources

1/21/2006IMT589- Applied and Structural Metadata9 End Result

1/21/2006IMT589- Applied and Structural Metadata10 Evidence of Success

1/21/2006IMT589- Applied and Structural Metadata11 Summary Scope your project so you know what you’re working on Gather requirements from users, tools, and existing apps that will determine your metadata Extract new metadata elements from your data, or review old ones for usefulness Build a preliminary model for use Develop system requirements based on your knowledge of the territory