Metadata in Practice (review)

Diane I. Hillmann, administrator of the AskDCMI service, and Elaine L. Westbrooks, metadata librarian at Cornell University, co-edited this collection of 16 essays on real-world applications of metadata in digital libraries. Approximately 70 percent of the book examines specific project-based implementations. Each of the authors was asked to address what they would have done differently on their project, given their current experience.

The projects in this volume cover a wide spectrum of stakeholders both within and outside the library community, including large academic libraries, museums, a statewide digitization project, a statewide union catalog, and a university's computer science department. The diversity of the projects covered requires the reader to make a number of shifts over the course of the book. The projects do not focus on one metadata standard but many. Projects described include educational materials, image collections, citation metadata, and geographic information systems. The remainder of the book covers speculation on the possible course metadata development might take in the future.

Early in the introduction, the editors remind readers that the book is not intended to replace Priscilla Caplan's Metadata Fundamentals for All Librarians (Chicago: American Library Association, 2003), which thoroughly covers the various metadata formats and standards. Rather, Metadata in Practice was written to complement and provide case studies on successful digital projects using metadata by addressing decisions implementers made as well as the future directions of each project. Though the book is not a how-to manual, it does raise many of the important issues that those considering a project involving metadata must address such as choice of standards and documentation.

All of the authors emphasize the importance of following the established standards and creating documentation. It is suggested that when choosing a metadata schema, Dublin Core may not be the best avenue for the community of users. Much depends on users' current and future expectations. A number of authors emphasize the need to remain current on the standards and to recognize the difference between standards that are emerging versus those that are established. Many of the authors also describe their efforts to address Open Archives Initiative-Protocol for Metadata Harvesting (OAI-PMH). OAI-PMH is a tool that promotes metadata sharing, which is quickly becoming a requirement if the project is grant funded.

One of the most intriguing bigger-picture items mentioned is the continued support and funding of metadata projects. The chapter detailing the Internet Scout Project and archive coordinated by the Computer Sciences Department at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, includes a brief history of the project's funding. The authors use the phrase "legacy project" to describe a metadata project that is no longer supported by grants or institutional funding. As metadata projects age, issues of continued support take on greater prominence.

The closing article provides insights into future directions such as Resource Description Format (RDF), which addresses portability of metadata over time. As noted in the article by Rachel Heery, RDF establishes a common data model allowing for the re-use of RDF-compliant resources. Making metadata used in digital libraries viable over time is critical to the overall success and development of digital libraries.

The book provides a needed practical discussion of the many policy decisions that those considering digital library projects involving metadata face. That being said, the content may be a bit advanced for readers without a cataloging background or a working knowledge of digital libraries. The articles intended to provide insights into the future could just as easily have been included at the beginning, as they tied all of the diverse issues together in a coherent fashion.