2nd Concertation Day 18 February 2000 The Charity Centre RSLP Collection Description

RSLP Collection Description - Feb Aims Update you on progress and solicit feedback... (Model) Schema Tool Data entry guidelines Plug any gaps in the above! Validate the schema Consider implementation issues

RSLP Collection Description - Feb Overview of model Background eLib Collection Description work Summary of the RSLP model Relation to other work Other collection description work Dublin Core Resource Description Framework

RSLP Collection Description - Feb Background environment Within libraries (in particular)… item level description widespread little or no collection level description existing CLD is often unstructured or semi-structured (Web pages)... …or limited to particular kinds of collections - e.g. OPACs difficult to disclose existence of collections - e.g. The Pitman Collection at Bath

RSLP Collection Description - Feb Project aims... consistent collection description across RSLP as a whole minimise duplicated effort across RSLP develop collection descriptions that are fairly high-level fairly simple broadly aligned with similar work elsewhere (e.g. Dublin Core) demonstrate benefits of approach through a cross-RSLP search service

RSLP Collection Description - Feb What this schema is not! NOT a replacement for existing detailed collection description formats (e.g. EAD) NOT a replacement for MARC NOT a replacement for Dublin Core clearly NOT the answer to all collection description problems!

RSLP Collection Description - Feb eLib Collection WG October 1989 meeting ==> WG Collection Description eLib supporting study broad view of ‘collection’ simple model based on ‘collections’ and ‘services’ based on review of DC, GILS, ISAD(G), ROADS and others 22 attribute set (largely Dublin Core) no syntax some eLib deployment (Riding, AGORA)

RSLP Collection Description - Feb RSLP Model more detailed model than the eLib one largely (though not exclusively) based on a library and archival view of ‘collection’ developed by Michael Heaney at Oxford (with funding from OCLC) is functionally concerned with finding identifying (describing sufficiently well)

RSLP Collection Description - Feb deals with all types of material not just digital not tied to an implementation models collections and their ‘catalogues’ relationships between collections and their descriptions different kinds of descriptions Note: the schema we have developed is what the Model document calls a Unitary Finding Aid (UFA) RSLP Model (2)

RSLP Collection Description - Feb Model (simplified view) Collection Item Content Collector Owner Producer Creator AdministratorLocation

RSLP Collection Description - Feb What is a collection? "an aggregation of physical and/or electronic items" natural objects created objects digital objects substitutes for objects –surrogates –metadata!

RSLP Collection Description - Feb What is a location? “the physical or digital place where a collection is held” physical location - e.g. a library or museum postal address digital location - e.g. an online service URL, Z39.50 target details,...

RSLP Collection Description - Feb What is an agent? “a person or corporate body related to the collection or location” agents... initiate actions have rights rights are important collector, owner, contributor, administrator note: may also be what the collection is “about”

RSLP Collection Description - Feb Owners and administrators Agents can have many roles at once Who controls access? access to location access to collection Who controls use? copyrights ownership

RSLP Collection Description - Feb Other work... Museums Cornucopia (24-Hour museum) NPO Register of Collection Strengths and Preservation Status UK HE RDN and DNER (JISC CCC), Archive Hub Dublin Core Public libraries Futures Together, Full Disclosure, NOF

RSLP Collection Description - Feb RSLP Schema Concerned with the description of Collections Locations Agents –collectors –owners –contributors –administrators Based on Dublin Core where possible

RSLP Collection Description - Feb Model (simplified view) Collection Item Content Collector Owner Producer Creator AdministratorLocation

RSLP Collection Description - Feb Collection attributes General attributes title, identifier, description, strength, physical characteristics, language, type, access control, accrual status Subject attributes concept(s), object(s), name(s), place(s), time(s) Date attributes contents date range, accumulation date range

RSLP Collection Description - Feb Location attributes General attributes name, identifier, access conditions Location place, locator

RSLP Collection Description - Feb Agent attributes General attributes name, organisation, phone, fax,

RSLP Collection Description - Feb Relation attributes Relations between collection and location hasLocation/isLocationFor Relations between collection and agent collector (creator), owner, contributor Relations between location and agent administrator Relations between collections (external) hasPart/isPartOf, hasDescription/isDescriptionOf

RSLP Collection Description - Feb RDF representation Resource Description Framework (RDF) W3C recommendation for metadata on the Web resource discovery, content rating, e- commerce, personal profiles,... XML syntax - tagged language Dublin Core involvement but…...not huge uptake yet!

RSLP Collection Description - Feb RDF representation (2) Simple “resource, property, value” model… …used to build complex descriptions R1 “Pitman Collection” R2 dc:title cld:hasLocation dc:title “University of Bath Library”

RSLP Collection Description - Feb RDF representation (3) <rdf:RDF xmlns:rdf=" xmlns:dc=" The Pitman Collection

RSLP Collection Description - Feb Implementation issues Aim - to build a central database of RSLP collection descriptions Issues from our point of view... how to create descriptions? how to share descriptions? Issues from your point of view… integration with project?

RSLP Collection Description - Feb Creation options use the Web-based tool centrally mounted service slow? may not integrate with workflow well? use project database (e.g. MS-Access or ROADS database) currently not possible to generate RDF from example MS-Access database use something else within project - export as RDF Issue: effort to develop mapping and conversion tools?

RSLP Collection Description - Feb Sharing options exchange of records between projects and the central database three possible models: 1. Pull model 2. Push model 3. Centralised model

RSLP Collection Description - Feb Pull model you create descriptions in RDF using one of the methods outlined you store them somewhere on your Web- site you tell us the URL of the place where you are storing them we gather them into the central database using a Web-robot easy… flexible… manual notification of updates not required

RSLP Collection Description - Feb Push model You create descriptions in RDF using one of the methods outlined You store them locally You them to us (on creation or update) We store them in the central database easy… flexible… manual notification of updates required

RSLP Collection Description - Feb Centralised model You create descriptions using the Web- based tool descriptions are entered directly into the database no need to store descriptions locally at your site central development required access control and maintenance becomes harder

RSLP Collection Description - Feb Search demonstrator Central database based on one or more of the sharing options (1 and/or 2 preferred!) Searchable by collection title location name subject (topic, object, agent, place, time) type everything (full-text)! ??