1. SCHEMAS Forum for metadata schema implementers
The SCHEMAS project and metadata
ETB Workshop, London, 9-10 January 2001
Michael Day,

2. Contents Project overview The SCHEMAS metadata registry
Audience, needs, SCHEMAS project offerings, some results to date
The SCHEMAS metadata registry
Objectives, approaches, implementation and functions
Application profiles
Some definitions 2

3. Partners PricewaterhouseCoopers Technology Consultants (PwC)
German National Research Centre for Information Technology (GMD)
UK Office for Library and Information Networking, University of Bath (UKOLN) 3

4. Audience Who? What for? Metadata schema designers
Projects under the EU’s IST programme (Multimedia Content and Tools) and national initiatives
What for?
Information, guidance and tools for the description of Web resources of all kinds
Helping designers to use what is already there 4

5. Domains Not just Dublin Core No ‘best way’ of doing things Education
Research
Academic services
Geospatial information
Other (e.g. Government)
Industry
Publishing and rights management
Audio-visual production and distribution
Cultural heritage
Not just Dublin Core
No ‘best way’ of doing things 5

6. Needs General need for: But: Standard methods for content description
Multiplicity of schemas, mixing and matching general and specific sets
But:
There is some duplication of effort, competition between standards and schemas
Potential confusion for implementers 6

7. Re-use Why re-use existing schemas? End result:
Not re-inventing wheels
Potential use of standard tools
Higher potential interoperability
End result:
Reduction of cost, now and in the future
Enlarging the potential audience
Interoperability 7

8. The information gap Metadata schemas already identified: Conclusions:
Over 200 implementation activities
Around 90 standardisation activities
Very different levels of information
Conclusions:
Good information about schemas is badly needed
Need for mutual understanding, hopefully leading to harmonisation 8

9. SCHEMAS provides ... Information provision Workshops
Metadata Watch Reports
Standards Framework Reports
Guidance material
Workshops
Registry implementation
Schemas, application profiles, people, projects, standards, tools, guidelines 9

10. SCHEMAS results Second Workshop (Bonn, November 2000)
First Workshop (Bath, June 2000) - report
Metadata Watch Reports: #1 (July 2000), #2 (September 2000), #3 (November 2000)
Standards Framework Report: #1 (Sept. 2000)
Second Workshop (Bonn, November 2000) 10

11. SCHEMAS Registry
Experience with prototype registry developed by DESIRE II project
The registry is the place to publish metadata schemas:
‘namespace schemas’
‘application profile schemas’
As well as other information about schemas, e.g.:
standards, projects, people, tools, etc. 11

12. Thick registry Namespace schema App Mapping profile Usage guide Thick
Sample
data
Users
Software tools 12

13. Thin registry Namespace schema Mapping App profile Sample data Usage
guide
Thin Registry
Software tools
Users 13

14. Registry approach The SCHEMAS registry will be:
a ‘thick registry’ initially, with schemas registered at a central location
develop into a ‘thin registry’ in the future, with pointers to schemas on the Web
The technical basis will be:
RDF Schemas
EOR toolkit 14

15. EOR Toolkit 15

16. Registry functions Registration Searching
schemas from European projects and initiatives
information and reviews from SCHEMAS domain correspondents
Searching
Finding application profiles for re-use
Finding information and guidance 16

17. Application profiles What is an application profile?
a schema identifying the use of elements from one or more namespaces in a particular application, with additional constraints
What is it used for?
To publish this information for a human audience
To help software configure 17

18. Profile process Common steps in defining profile
identify requirements for descriptive elements
find appropriate standard
link required elements to standard elements where possible
define remaining elements and/or qualifiers in private namespace
link remaining elements 18

19. Contacts http://www.schemas-forum.org/ Makx Dekkers
Rachel Heery
Tom Baker
Web site: 19

21. Acknowledgements
Based on a presentation given by Makx Dekkers (PricewaterhouseCoopers) at the MALVINE and LEAF conference: Gateways to Europe’s Cultural Heritage, Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin, 4-5 December 2000. 21