The document provides an overview of using relational databases and structured data to efficiently store and reuse cultural heritage metadata. Key points include: - Structured data stored in a relational database can be transformed and output in different formats like XML, Excel, or data dictionaries for various tools. - Authority files are used to consistently represent entities and their information is linked to other records. - XML is more flexible than flat files as it allows repeating fields and complex relationships between data. - Data dictionaries customize how metadata is displayed for different uses and users.

1. Images of the
Babbage Engine
taken from the
Computer
History Museum
website
http://www.computerhistory.org

2. Learning to Make Your
Data Work Harder Than
You Do

3. Do it once, do it right
Its about
transforming and
repurposing the
same data for different tools
and users in the most
automated way possible, not
recreating it

4. Three
Words:
USE PLANNING
DOCUMENTS

5. In the age of Google, why have
fielded data?
•More efficient for both data entry and for
systems to search, retrieve and ingest
•Parsed, discretely fielded
data can be recombined
mechanically for a variety of
outputs and uses, including
XML

6. Data flow and use
Cataloging Institutional
utility Digital
XML
(relational Repository
database)
xslt
xslt
Web 2.0
Delivery Systems
XMP (in images) Users ARTstor
RSS feeds XMP (in MDID
Websites
images) CONTENTdm
tools
Flat Excel LUNA Insight etc.
PDF

8. Data flow and use
Cataloging Institutional
utility Digital
XML
(relational Repository
database)
xslt
Web 2.0
Delivery Systems
XMP (in images) Users ARTstor
RSS feeds XMP (in MDID
Websites
images) CONTENTdm
tools
Flat Excel LUNA Insight etc.
PDF

9. A pithy answer to ―why relational?‖
(for cataloging)
• Message from Jan Eklund to VRA-L, Feb
20, 2008, subject: Re: CONTENTdm and metadata (now
posted on VRA web under Resources)
– Complexity: ―complexity cannot be captured efficiently
in a flat data model because basically you have to
leave space in every record to accommodate the
most complex object you will ever encounter. This
adds up to a lot of wasted space, and wasted space
means more money…‖
– Consistency: ―all the descriptive data about the work
is entered once, and every image that shows this
work inherits the same information‖

10. Excel sample (―flat file‖ output)
Notice that each row represents an image
file and conflates the work and image
records (repeats the information about the
work for each image).
Each repeating value (like
Artist) must have a column
reserved for possible use.

11. XML sample—more like a flexible accordion—expands as needed

12. ER Diagrams show related tables

13. Authority record
All the
information
about the
agent is
supplied from
this file on the
basis of the
numeric key
Numeric key

14. Repeating values are supported for each
element (using portals or subforms)
―indexed‖ value (in this case the sort name)
Numeric
key
A note field
is possible ―display‖ value done to CCO
for every recommended formatting. Note that
Core 4 the Agent Nationality is supplied
element automatically here by the
Link (numeric key) to the Agent
Authority

15. Creation of an XSLT
• XSLT stands for Extensible Stylesheet
Language Transformation. XSLT is XML-based.
You can use a stylesheet to take an XML
document and turn it into plain text, PDF
documents, web pages, or to import fielded data
into other applications.
• In this case sample it creates a tab delimited file
and specifies the field names in the headers
when it is converted into Excel (extra step is to
preserve diacritics with Unicode)

16. VCat
• Begun 2004 with goal of being fully
relational, VRA Core 4 and CCO compliant
and capable of Core 4 XML output—that
goal met
• Reality in 2010—flattened Excel is still the
lingua franca. The XML export stylesheet
was used as basis to create a flattened
Excel export
• So, there are now 2 exports (XSLTs) that
can provide XML and Excel

17. You can create as many stylesheets as
you like for specific purposes
VCat folder
.xsd=schema; .xsl=stylesheet; .xml=document

19. Data flow and use
Cataloging Institutional
utility Digital
XML
(relational Repository
database)
xslt
Web 2.0
Delivery Systems
XMP (in images) Users ARTstor
RSS feeds XMP (in MDID
Websites
images) CONTENTdm
tools
Flat Excel LUNA Insight etc.
PDF

20. Sample XML output (small clip)

21. Data flow and use
Cataloging Institutional
utility Digital
XML
(relational Repository
database)
xslt
Web 2.0
Delivery Systems
XMP (in images) Users ARTstor
RSS feeds XMP (in MDID
Websites
images) CONTENTdm
tools
Flat Excel LUNA Insight etc.
PDF

22. Creation of a mapping document to
a standard
• Flattened Core 4

23. • Flattening repeating fields

24. Sample Excel output
(a small clip)

25. Data flow and use
Cataloging Institutional
utility Digital
XML
(relational Repository
database)
xslt
Web 2.0 Data
XMP (in images) Dictionary Systems
Delivery
Users ARTstor
RSS feeds XMP (in MDID
Websites
images) CONTENTdm
tools
Flat Excel LUNA Insight etc.
PDF

26. Creation of a Data Dictionary for
each tool
• Data dictionaries help set the display look
of the data that the patron sees—this can
be customized and where the use of
―index‖ and ―display‖ values of Core 4 are
crucial
• They also set the things the patron does
not see—under the surface search
parameters, like using early and late date
(index fields) to do ―fuzzy‖ searching

27. Display data is like publishing:
arranges data attractively for user

28. Difference in user display and
cataloger mode
We are used to seeing this in OPACs

30. Sample MDID Data Dictionary
Set import, field labels, thumb captions, sorting,
searching, keyword searching, DC mapping for cross
collection searching, advance search pop-down lists, etc.

32. VCat ARTstor

33. VCat-ARTstor Data Dictionary
Concatenate fields; Set display order
―prepend‖ global of grouped fields
information or labels

34. Data Dictionary
settings in action
Clustered (grouped) fields;
ability to concatenate
information or ―preprend‖
information

35. Setting thumb captions
In this case, ARTstor has a floating information window; in other tools
this would be a place to use the INDEX value of the name (which is the
sort value instead of the display)
Also allows user to change thumb sort

36. Users use keywords

39. Same data, different tools and
users
• The following 3 slides show the same data
prepared for our stock and royalty-free
publishing site hosted on SmugMug—the
educational data is reduced and
compressed into an IPTC-like caption and
keywords only and written into the image
header. This means it can be seen using
Cooliris as well (which is fun).

41. The Cooliris ―wall‖ of images with captions

43. In general, you seek to adapt the xslt
stylesheet and the data dictionary as
needed rather than changing the data
that you produce centrally—that
should remain consistent to a
standard and you should seek the
ability to express that in a standard
xml schema, as well as any other
stylesheets. Hopefully future tools will
ingest from the standard schema.

44. Thinking about how to present
grouped or complex objects
• Think about this upfront so that your
cataloging can help facilitate groupings—
use of data values
• Also think about what needs to be
consistently fielded data (including local
field structure) to help order and sequence
manuscripts and time-based works
• These will require local fields and data
dictionary mapping and settings

45. Pragmatic, phased approaches
• Being able to find and update older
records easily and consistently into full
Core 4 when it is better supported in tools
• Supplying the data now in some useful
form

47. ―Collection‖ record