UKOLN Metadata Projects: Subject Gateways and Preservation Metadata Michael Day UKOLN, University of Bath Electronic Resources: Definition, Selection and Cataloguing, Rome, November 2001

Electronic Resources conference, Rome, November 2001 Presentation overview This presentation: Will describe some of the many collaborative projects in which UKOLN is a partner Subject gateways –Resource Discovery Network (RDN) –Renardus project Digital preservation metadata –Cedars project

Subject gateways

Electronic Resources conference, Rome, November 2001 Subject gateways (1) Definitions (Koch, 2000): –‘Quality-controlled subject gateways’ –Support systematic resource discovery of Internet resources –Collection development & management (e.g., published selection criteria) –Rich resource description (metadata) –Enhanced subject access, e.g. –browsing subject classification hierarchies –use of controlled vocabularies for subject indexing –Use of standards

Electronic Resources conference, Rome, November 2001 Subject gateways (2) Early developments: –SOSIG (Social Science Information Gateway) set up in 1994 –UK Electronic Libraries (eLib) Programme –Funded some gateway services: EEVL, OMNI, SOSIG, etc. –Also software and support: ROADS project –Wider European developments: –EELS (Engineering Electronic Library Sweden) –DutchESS (Dutch Electronic Subject Service) –The DESIRE projects (Telematics for Research)

Electronic Resources conference, Rome, November 2001 RDN (1) The Resource Discovery Network: –A UK service –Funded by the Joint Information Systems Committee (JISC) –Launched in November

Electronic Resources conference, Rome, November 2001 RDN (2) Objectives: –To extend coverage to subject areas not covered by the original eLib gateways –To integrate access to existing gateways –To develop subject based portals for educational communities –To establish new organisational and business models (for sustainability)

Electronic Resources conference, Rome, November 2001 RDN structure (1) RDN Centre (RDNC) - Part of JISC’s DNER (Distributed National Distributed Resource) Office Roles: –Promoting and developing the network –Establishing frameworks to ensure quality, consistency, and interoperability across the RDN –Presenting gateways in various views to exploit their interdisciplinary and cross- sectoral value

Electronic Resources conference, Rome, November 2001 RDN structure (2) RDN “Hubs” - –Faculty-level (for higher education) –Some based on eLib subject gateways, others newly established –Made up of one or more gateways –Catalogue resources using a variety of metadata schema –Offer gateway data for a central cross- searching service

Electronic Resources conference, Rome, November 2001 RDN structure (3) Current hubs: –Biome (health & life sciences) –EEVL (computing, engineering & mathematics) –Humbul (arts & humanities) –PSIgate (physical sciences) –SOSIG (social sciences, business & law) In development: –Altis (tourism, leisure & hospitality) –Creative arts & industries –Environment & geography

Electronic Resources conference, Rome, November 2001 RDN ResourceFinder RDN provides a central broker service that gives access to resource descriptions in all gateways –Simple cross-search –Previous versions based on Whois++ and Z39.50 protocols - performance issues –Current version is based on sharing records through the OAI (Open Archives Initiative) protocol –Single search box interface...

Electronic Resources conference, Rome, November 2001

RDN interoperability Cataloguing guidelines –Defines mandatory fields, schemes and qualifiers –Draft rules for content based on DCMES –Minimum set includes: Title, Subject, Description, Type, Identifier and Language. –Shared list of types Common subject approach for cross- browsing –co-operation with Renardus and HILT

Electronic Resources conference, Rome, November 2001 Renardus project (1) General information: Renardus: Academic Subject Gateway Service Europe IST programme (FP5) 12 partners from 7 European countries led by the National Library of the Netherlands (KB) January June

Electronic Resources conference, Rome, November 2001 Renardus project (2) Objectives: To build upon existing European subject gateway activity: –Services: –e.g., DAINet, DutchESS, EELS, NOVAgate, FVL, RDN, SSG-FI gateways, etc. –Support: –e.g., ROADS, DESIRE, IMesh collaboration, etc. Development of pilot broker service Sustainability through collaboration

Electronic Resources conference, Rome, November 2001 Renardus project (3) Main background issues: Architecture for broker service Technical standards and solutions Data model (metadata schema) –WP led by Goettingen State and University Library –Based on Dublin Core Organisational and business issues –Sustainability, branding, IPR, etc. Metadata sharing

Electronic Resources conference, Rome, November 2001 Renardus pilot (1) Cross-search –Based on implementation of the Z39.50 protocol –Renardus profile –Common data model, based on DCMES: –Title (M), Title.Alternative (O), Creator (R), Description (M), Subject (M), Subject with scheme = Renardus-DDC (M), Identifier (M), Language (R), Type (R), Country (R) –Various schemes defined –ISO (Language), ISO (Country) –Allows for advanced searching

Electronic Resources conference, Rome, November 2001

Renardus pilot (2) Cross-browsing: –Dewey Decimal Classification used as a switching language –DDC terms mapped to the subject schemes used by local gateways –OCLC Forest Press research license –Mapping report and guidelines published (2001) –Mapping for most partner gateways completed by Autumn 2001

Electronic Resources conference, Rome, November 2001

Renardus: other issues Sustainability of service organisation business model Looking to the future Metadata sharing Classification mapping

Digital preservation metadata

Electronic Resources conference, Rome, November 2001 Digital preservation (1) The problem: “... ensuring that digital information of continuing value remains accessible and usable” - (Hedstrom, 1998) about access, not just long-term storage is a technical problem but is also a huge organisational and managerial problem

Electronic Resources conference, Rome, November 2001 Digital preservation (2) Preservation strategies: Technology preservation - museums of hardware and software Emulation Migration All strategies depend to some extent on the creation and maintenance of metadata

Electronic Resources conference, Rome, November 2001 Preservation metadata Metadata is an important part of any digital preservation strategy: –Within a digital repository, “metadata accompanies and makes reference to each digital object and provides associated descriptive, structural, administrative, rights management, and other kinds of information.” (Lynch, 1999)

Electronic Resources conference, Rome, November 2001 The OAIS model (1) Reference Model for an Open Archival Information System (OAIS): –Consultative Committee on Space Data Systems (CCSDS) –Red Book, Issue 2 (June 2001) –Establishes a common framework of terms and concepts which comprise an OAIS –Facilitates the description and comparison of archives –A basis for further standardisation (ISO DIS 14721) –A basis for conformance

Electronic Resources conference, Rome, November 2001 The OAIS model (2) Administration Ingest Archival Storage Access Data Management Descriptive info. AIP PRODUCERPRODUCER CONSUMERCONSUMER SIP DIP MANAGEMENT queries result sets Descriptive info. Preservation Planning orders OAIS Functional Model (Figure 4-1)

Electronic Resources conference, Rome, November 2001 The OAIS model (3) Information Package (e.g., an AIP): –Content Information –The information that is the primary object of preservation. Containing a Digital Object and any Representation Information (technical metadata) needed to transform this object into meaningful information –Preservation Description Information (PDI) –other information “which will allow the understanding of the Content Information over an indefinite period of time” –Terms defined in CPA/RLG report (1996)

Electronic Resources conference, Rome, November 2001 Preservation Description Information Reference Information Provenance Information Context Information Fixity Information Preservation Description Information: The OAIS model (4) OAIS Information Package Taxonomy (Figure 4-14)

Electronic Resources conference, Rome, November 2001 Cedars project CURL Exemplars in Digital Archives: –Led by the Consortium of University Research Libraries (CURL) –Funded by the JISC, initially as part of phase 3 of the eLib Programme –First phase, –Extension, to March 2002 –Main partners: Universities of Cambridge, Leeds and Oxford; support from UKOLN for the work on metadata

Electronic Resources conference, Rome, November 2001 Cedars metadata (1) Review of preservation metadata initiatives (1998) Draft metadata schema (2000) –Adopted OAIS as framework –Included –Content Information (including Representation Information) –Preservation Description Information

Electronic Resources conference, Rome, November 2001 Cedars project (3) Preservation Description Information: Reference Information –Resource Description –Title, Creator, etc. –Reference labels –Existing metadata Context Information –Reason for Preservation –Related Information Objects

Electronic Resources conference, Rome, November 2001 Cedars project (4) Provenance Information –History of Origin –Management History –Use History –Known Operating Environments –Rights Management Fixity Information –Checksum

Electronic Resources conference, Rome, November 2001 Cedars project (5) Project extension: –practical focus –dissemination –guidance documents on various topics (including preservation metadata) –workshop CAMiLEON: –JISC/NSF International Digital Libraries Programme –testing emulation strategies

Electronic Resources conference, Rome, November 2001 OCLC/RLG working groups Preservation Metadata Working Group: –White Paper - “Preservation metadata for digital objects: a review of the state of the art” (March 2001) –Cedars, NEDLIB & NLA –Content Information (October 2001) –PDI (still under discussion) Digital Archive Attributes Working Group: –Draft paper - “Attributes of a trusted digital repository” (August 2001)

Electronic Resources conference, Rome, November 2001 UKOLN UKOLN is funded by Resource: the Council for Museums, Archives & Libraries (the organisation that succeeded the Library and Information Commission), the Joint Information Systems Committee (JISC) of the UK higher and further education funding councils, as well as by project funding from the JISC and the European Union. UKOLN also receives support from the University of Bath where it is based.