Introduction to Metadata

MetadataData about data. Metadata provides a context for research findings, ideally in a machine-readable format. It enables discovery of data via an electronic interface, and correct use and attribution of findings. Related Guide. Just a mention of the word can cause experienced professionals to cringe. The idea is simple – attach information to your data, so they can be discovered and used. At the end of the day, metadata is just data about data. Metadata describes the who, what, when, where and how about a resource. In today’s research environment, metadata is quickly becoming more of a requirement. Really, that makes sense… If you want to find data to support your research, you need metadata. Or, if you want to use the data that you do find, you need metadata. On the other hand, you want the professionals who find and use your data to know where it came from, and how to use it correctly… Beyond inevitable, metadata works to your benefit!

Unfortunately, the implementation can quickly become complicated.

Where do you publish the metadata?

How do you attach it to the data?

What exactly are the minimum requirements?

Which standardA set of documented rules which define the creation of metadata by providing a combination of terminology (vocabularies), syntactical rules, format rules, and other requirements. Metadata standards are approved, published and governed by a formal body or organization with broad community-based representation (international or national). Related Guide(s) should I use?

And, this is just after thinking about the issue for a few minutes… Imagine the questions after thinking about metadata for an extended period of time!

The good news is - there is a community of scientists, technologists and publishers that have tackled the world of marine metadata. In this document, and the pages that follow, we will share with you the successes and lessons of our experience.

In this section of the guides, you will get an introduction to basic metadata concepts and approaches. Metadata Defined, plus the lower-level guides on Metadata Classifications and Types of Vocabularies are your introduction to the language of metadata, where commonly used terms are defined. The next three sections—The Importance of Metadata, Metadata Interoperability, and Machine Readability—describe rationales for metadata. Getting Started with Metadata is where you start working, laying out the steps you should go through to develop and implement metadata for your project. Writing Good Metadata provides a quick checklist of characteristics your metadata should have. And finally, Examples of Metadata connects you to some real-world examples of completed metadata.