First of all, there are so many types of databases, more than I ever imagined. I do not even know why that surprises me, but it totally does. I guess I just figured a database was a database, and that was not specialization within the software. My main question on this article is really a clarification. Around the beginning they use the acronyms RDBMS and ODBMS. Do R and O stand for relational and object respectively?
Introduction to Metadata, pathways to Digital Information: 1: Setting the Stage-
I found this article to be extremely enlightening. In a day and age where Wikipedia seems to reign supreme in how a person access information, it was wonderful to read an article about how now everyone is contributing to creating data, and not just information specialists. The web has brought about a information revolution, whether we like it or not, and this showed how that revolution was making those of us involved in the Information profession step up to the plate. Even though anyone out there can now access and contribute to the creation of metadata, it is up to us to make sure that it is accurate and searchable. Librarians are not being phased out of this process, rather we are more important than ever. With the overload of data, it is up to us to take control and start organizing everything into a usable form. Already the article pointed out smaller cases of metadata systems being created to provide access and understandability to out old databases. This is work that we need to continue so that in a world filed with data, we can make sure that a person can find what they need.
An Overview of the Dublin Core Data Model-
This model was mention briefly in the previous article and I was glad for a chance to read about it further. It seems that this model was looking to united disciplines in their labeling of their metadata in a way that made in universal and easily accessible. These are in fact requirements for being part of the DCDM, along with making everything as clear as possible, including identifying vocabulary that is profession specific. I was hoping that this article would clear up more about this system for me, because the beginning was so straight forward. I will confess to becoming lost once all the computer commands started coming into play, and it took me longer than I expected to fully understand what was going on.
You make a great point about the importance of librarians in making all the information now available searchable and findable. Also an issue that is becoming more difficult on the web, which you addressed, is authenticity. There is so much information, and people need to be able to distinguish between the authenticity of their sources. This is a big problem in education because students today grew up on the Internet. They may not have the same skepticism of online sources as others. Librarians can play a big role in this important aspect of education.
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