Application Profiles Application profiles -- are schemas which consist of data elements drawn from one or more namespaces, combined together by implementers, and optimized for a particular local application. -- Heery, R. and Patel, M. Application profiles: mixing and matching metadata schemas. Ariadne 25, Sept. 24, An application profile -- is an assemblage of metadata elements selected from one or more metadata schemas and combined in a compound schema. -- Duval, E., et al. Metadata Principles and Practicalities D-Lib Magazine, April

Illustration of an application profile consisting of metadata terms (elements and element refinements) drawn from one or more namespaces (element sets).

Examples Australia Government Locator Service Manual TitleIdentifierCreator Date Publisher Contributor LanguageSubject Description Type Format Coverage SourceRelation Rights Availability Function Audience Mandate 3

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Designing of Application Profiles 1) Defining functional requirements  What do you want to accomplish with your application? 2) Selecting or Developing a Domain model  a description of what things your metadata will describe, and the relationships between those things 3) Selecting or Defining Metadata Terms  Select a “base” metadata namespace  Select metadata terms from other metadata name spaces  Define local metadata terms 4) Designing the Metadata Descriptions  Enforcement of applications of the metadata terms 1) Cardinality enforcement 2) Value Space Restriction 3) Relationship and dependency specification 5) Usage Guidelines  provide the "how" and "why" 6) Syntax Guidelines  encoding guidelines 5

3) Selecting or Defining Metadata Terms – an example from NDLTD ① Select “base” metadata namespace ② Select elements from other metadata name spaces ③ Define local metadata elements ④ Enforcement of applications of the elements  Cardinality enforcement  Value Space Restriction  Relationship and dependency specification 6 -- Dublin Core --13 elements (no source, no relation) --thesis.degree -- some changed from “optional” to “mandatory” -- recommended default value, in addition to DC’s -- new refinement terms

7 added a refinement new cardinality enforcement new value space restriction

8 added a local metadata element

Can an AP declare new metadata terms (elements and refinements) and definitions? "If an implementor wishes to create 'new' elements that do not exist elsewhere then (under this model) they must create their own namespace schema, and take responsibility for 'declaring' and maintaining that schema." Heery and Patel (2000) Dublin Core Application Profile Guidelines [CEN, 2003] also includes instructions on "Identifying terms with appropriate precision" (Section 3) and "Declaring new elements" (Section 5.7) 9

The key used for "Identifier" is: DC = Approved Dublin Core elements and qualifiers NLMDC = Approved Dublin Core elements with NLM-defined qualifiers NLM = NLM-defined elements Element: Subject, MeSH Name: Subject, MeSH Identifier: DC.Subject.MeSH Definition: Topic of the content of the resource, expressed in NLM Medical Subject Headings Required: O Repeatable: Y Comments: N/A Element: Subject, Class Number Name: Subject, Class Number Identifier: NLMDC.Subject.NLMClass Definition: An NLM classification number which represents the topic of the content of the resource Required: O Repeatable: N Comments: N/A Element: Permanence Level Name: Permanence Level Identifier: NLM.Permanence.Level Definition: The extent to which a user can be assured that the resource will remain stable and available Required: R Repeatable: N Comments: N/A NLM Metadata Schema

Framework for An Application Profiles -- Using Dublin Core as a context  A Dublin Core Application Profile (DCAP) is a document (or set of documents) that specifies and describes the metadata used in a particular application.  To accomplish this, a profile:  describes what a community wants to accomplish with its application (Functional Requirements);  characterizes the types of things described by the metadata and their relationships (Domain Model);  enumerates the metadata terms to be used and the rules for their use (Description Set Profile and Usage Guidelines); and  defines the machine syntax that will be used to encode the data (Syntax Guidelines and Data Formats). 

References  Heery, R. and Patel, M. Application profiles: mixing and matching metadata schemas. Ariadne 25, Sept. 24,  Duval, E., et al. Metadata Principles and Practicalities. D-Lib Magazine, April  The AVEL (Australasian Virtual Engineering Library) Metadata set  Guidelines for Dublin Core Application Profiles. Karen Coyle and Thomas Baker guidelines/ guidelines/ 12