Are Libraries Ready for Linked Data?A not-too-technical look at the question at hand …Diane I. HillmannInformation Institute of Syracuse/Metadata Management Associates

To Re-phrase the question …If “linked data” is about relationships …And we’re done (pretty much) with expressing relationships using textual notes (as we have done for decades—nay, CENTURIES—first on catalog cards, then using AACR and MARC)And we understand that we need machine-based methods to really do the job well … THEN …7/13/092ALA Annual: Linked Data Program

We’re READY!7/13/093ALA Annual: Linked Data Program

Getting Real--Defining READYAvailability of schemas and vocabulariesRDA is full of relationships, from the FRBR model to the extensive relationship vocabularies currently registered and near completionAvailability of applications and tools that can help us use linked dataStarted, certainly, but not entirely there yet[Jennifer will talk a bit about this part]7/13/094ALA Annual: Linked Data Program

Starting at the Grass Level7/13/095ALA Annual: Linked Data Program

What’s All This About Triples?In traditional cataloging, you get attribute/value pairs: Title = Bluebeard Author = Vonnegut, KurtAnd you know what the object of the statements are because they’re part of a RECORD7/13/096ALA Annual: Linked Data Program

What’s All This About Triples?In traditional cataloging, you get a record package, with an ID: Title = Bluebeard Author = Vonnegut, KurtThe record is identifiable and shareable, but the statements within that package cannot stand aloneRecord ID=abc123457/13/097ALA Annual: Linked Data Program

PersonBookHas AuthorYou’ve seen this before …7/13/098ALA Annual: Linked Data Program

BookPersonHas AuthorHas NameHas TitleVonnegut, KurtBluebeardAnd this …7/13/099ALA Annual: Linked Data Program

Object & Agent Have IdentifiersBookPersonHas AuthorRelationshipsHave IdentifiersHas NameHas TitleVonnegut, KurtBluebeardIdentifiers are critical for Linked Data!Libraries are used to providing identifiers for Agents and Objects, but not for Relationships7/13/0910ALA Annual: Linked Data Program

Q: How do we make Identifiers for Relationships?A: We already have them, in RDA7/13/0911ALA Annual: Linked Data Program

URIDefinitionFor use with this FRBR entity7/13/0912ALA Annual: Linked Data Program

More specific properties7/13/0913ALA Annual: Linked Data Program

7/13/0914ALA Annual: Linked Data Program

Registered Elements Contain:Names and labels Resolvable URIs (for machine use, primarily)Reciprocal relationships between elementsRelationships between RDA Elements and FRBR entities (FRBR entities will be maintained by IFLA)Administrative properties (status, update date, notes, maintainer)7/13/0915ALA Annual: Linked Data Program

7/13/0916ALA Annual: Linked Data Program262 Relationships?

URIParent PropertyStatusLanguage7/13/0917ALA Annual: Linked Data Program

Please Note:The fact that the registration of RDA vocabularies supports a linked data future for libraries is NOT ACCIDENTALWe owe a great deal to the funders of the DCMI/RDA Task Group (The British Library and Siderean Software), who had the vision to wade in and support this workThe vocabularies will be complete, reviewed and with status “published” when RDA is released7/13/0918ALA Annual: Linked Data Program

Thank you!7/13/0919ALA Annual: Linked Data Program