ZedAI Meta Data - MODS Recommendation

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Contents 1 MODS 2 MODS Inclusion Mechanisms 2.1 RDFa 2.2 RDF/XML 2.3 XML 2.4 Recommendation 3 MODS RDF 4 MODS Classes and Properties 4.1 originInfo 4.1.1 publisher 4.1.2 place 4.1.3 edition 4.1.4 dateCreated 4.1.5 copyrightDate 4.1.6 dateIssued 4.1.7 dateValid 4.1.8 dateModified 4.1.9 issuance 4.1.10 frequency 4.2 titleInfo 4.2.1 title 4.2.2 subTitle 4.2.3 partNumber 4.2.4 partName 4.2.5 type 4.3 name 4.3.1 namePart 4.3.2 displayForm 4.3.3 affiliation 4.3.4 role 4.3.5 description 4.4 language 4.5 identifier 4.6 physicalDescription 4.6.1 internetMediaType 4.6.2 extent 4.7 note 4.8 relatedItem 5 Meta Data Example 5.1 DAISY/NISO z39.86-5 5.2 RDFa 5.3 RDF/XML 5.4 MODS XML

MODS

The Meta Data Object Description Schema (or MODS) is being put forward by the meta data subgroup for consideration as the new meta data standard for DAISY authoring and interchange xml standard.

The MODS standard is arguably the most comprehensive meta data standard in usage, and has a long and stable history, having been developed from the MARC bibliographic standard used throughout the world for cataloguing documents.

MODS Inclusion Mechanisms

RDFa

RDFa is the intrinsic meta data framework for XHTML documents. Although from a traditional XML perspective it is a loose and weak way of structuring data, it is not meant to be XML and brings instead greater flexibility and better integration. Besides the simplicity of a built-in framework, using RDFa means that XML element sets do not have to be imported and merged with the existing grammar, allowing producers to seamless integrate and layer other specifications as needed.

Although the meta data group is recommending that all meta data be included in the document header, there is no reason why RDFa attributes cannot be used anywhere in the document to specify meta data wherever it occurs. There are problems that producers will have to overcome if they choose this liberal approach to meta data, but the problems are not insurmountable.

One of the key downsides to RDFa that has been identified is the lack of integration with existing XML tools. Without the ability to "code complete" documents being hand coded, there will be a much stronger requirement for producers to fully understand the MODS schema in order to implement their meta data. This requirement can also be seen as a good thing, but the trade-off will be in production time.

RDF/XML

MODS can also be expressed in RDF/XML syntax. There are two advantages to this approach over RDFa inclusion: 1) properties can be used as attributes to simplify markup (i.e., nesting of elements to include properties would not be necessary); and, 2) values would not have to be embedded as attributes on meta tags, an intrinsically weak way to add data to documents.

RDF/XML, also being RDF, suffers from the same weaknesses as RDFa in terms of structure and validation, leaving it as only a slightly cleaner way of including data.

XML

RDF, as noted, is a loose way of incorporating meta data and requires a lot of nesting of elements to represent a complicated schema like MODS. While MODS does not rank high in the list of most complicated schemas, getting it right within HTML meta tags is not a simplistic task either without being very familiar with the standard. This drawback is no different from current DAISY meta data standards, but has been identified as one of the shortcomings of earlier iterations (resulting in missing meta data and misused meta data fields).

The easiest way to simplfiy the entry of MODS meta data is to import the MODS namespace and embed MODS XML elements directly in the header. This would limit the ability to "sprinkle" meta data throughout a document, but would would make the entering of meta data vastly simpler.

Documents would be simpler to validate, as well, as RDF cannot currently be validated to the same degree or precision in the current framework.

Recommendation

At this stage, the meta data group is proposing that the RDFa route be chosen until it is proven to be too difficult or problematic. Although more difficult to create and validate than XML, RDFa still has the benefit of being in-built and optimized for inclusion in XHTML2, and deserves a fair trial before being dismissed in favour of something more simplistic like XML.

Importing XML is a simple matter and can be done easily at any point in the process, so is always available as a fall-back method.

MODS RDF

If RDFa is the chosen framework, most shrewd readers will be wondering where the RDF definition for MODS is at this point. It's a question currently without an answer.

The meta data subgroup has made an effort to put together a very literal interpretation of the MODS XML standard in RDF for the initial release, but there is not an official standard to reference at this point. We do not see this current limitation as any greater threat to the development of the AI standard than the lack of an official XHTML2 recommendation at this stage.

Members of the subgroup have been in contact with the MODS maintainers, and work on an RDF implementation is ongoing. We expect and hope that they will complete their work before we reach the final release for the standard, but failing the work being finalized our intention is to use the strict interpretation that has been developed.

MODS Classes and Properties

The complete MODS element set has not yet been converted to RDF. Instead, while waiting on the MODS maintainers to develop an official document, a limited set of elements have been converted based on the requirements initially identified by the group.

The following sections outline each of the elements that are being included in the initial release. For complete information on the MODS elements, attributes and values that are the precursors of these RDF properties, please refer to the MODS 3.3 user guidelines.

originInfo

At least one originInfo class is required for conformance with the standard.

As most producers of DAISY documents are not the original publishers of the documents, one of the primary meta data needs is to represent and separate these two, often distinct, entities. The originInfo class is the MODS element that can serve this dual function.

When the publisher and producer of a document are the same entity, only a single originInfo class needs to be included in a document's meta data. The presence of a single class will infer this relationship to be true.

For example:

	<meta typeof="mods:originInfo">
		<!-- publisher == producer -->
	</meta>

To serve the dual function of specifying separate producer and publisher information, however, requires that the relatedInfo class, detailed below, be used to wrap the original publisher's information.

The relatedInfo class has a type property that allows the value original. When set, the classes contained within the relatedInfo class must relate to the publisher of the document. With the publisher's information contained within the relatedItem, the primary originInfo class relates only to the producer of the file.

For example:

	<meta typeof="mods:originInfo">
		<!-- producer -->
	</meta>
	<meta typeof="mods:relatedItem">
		<meta property="mods:type" content="original"/>
		<meta typeof="mods:originInfo">
			<!-- producer -->
		</meta>
	</meta>

The originInfo class can contain the properties outlined in the following subsections. The properties must be contained within an originInfo class in order to be valid.

publisher

The name of the producer/publisher:

	<meta property="mods:publisher" content="CNIB Library"/>

place

The physical location of the producer/publisher:

	<meta property="mods:place" content="Toronto, Ontario"/>

edition

The edition/version of the book/document:

	<meta property="mods:edition" content="2nd Edition"/>

dateCreated

The date the document was created:

	<meta property="mods:dateCreated" content="2009-12-11" scheme="iso-8601"/>

Dates should conform to the ISO-8601 standard, but are not required to.

copyrightDate

The copyright date of the document:

	<meta property="mods:copyrightDate" content="Copyright &copy 2009"/>

dateIssued

The date on which the document was released:

	<meta property="mods:dateIssued" content="2009-04-01" scheme="iso-8601"/>

Dates must conform to the ISO-8601 standard.

dateValid

Date to which the content of the document can be considered valid:

	<meta property="mods:dateValid" content="2020-01-01" scheme="iso-8601"/>

Dates must conform to the ISO-8601 standard.

dateModified

The last modification date of the document:

	<meta property="mods:dateModified" content="2009-04-01" scheme="iso-8601"/>

Dates must conform to the ISO-8601 standard.

issuance

The issuance property can be set to continuous to indicate that the document is a periodical:

	<meta property="mods:issuance" content="continuous"/>

frequency

For periodicals, the frequency property can be added to indicate the release interval:

	<meta property="mods:frequency" content="monthly"/>

titleInfo

A titleInfo class is required for conformance with the standard.

The titleInfo class, as it suggests, contains meta information about the title of the document.

A document can contain more than one titleInfo class when translated titles, etc. are included. When including more than one titleInfo class, a type property must be included in all subsequent classes to indicate their purpose.

The titleInfo class can contain the properties outlined in the following subsections. The properties must be contained within an titleInfo class in order to be valid.

title

A title property is required for conformance with the standard.

The title of the document:

	<meta property="mods:title" content="Dr. Strangelove"/>

subTitle

The subtitle of the document:

	<meta property="mods:subtitle" content="Or how I learned to stop worrying..."/>

partNumber

When reproducing a piece of a larger work, the part number:

	<meta property="mods:partNumber" content="43.2"/>

partName

When reproducing a piece of a larger work, the part name:

	<meta property="mods:partName" content="Quantum Theory Basics"/>

type

When including more than one titleInfo class, indicates the type of information. The value of this property can be one of: abbreviated, translated, alternative or uniform.

	<meta property="mods:type" content="translated"/>

The primary title of the document must never include a type property in its titleInfo class.

name

The name class is used to define each creator of a document. The name class can occur multiple times within a document as a result.

The name class can contain the properties outlined in the following subsections. The properties must be contained within a name class in order to be valid.

namePart

The name of the person:

	<meta property="mods:namePart" content="William Blake"/>

If parsing a name into component pieces, include a type property with one of the following values for each part: family, given, termsOfAddress or date.

	<meta property="mods:namePart" content="Blake">
		<meta property="mods:type" content="family"/>
	</meta>
	<meta property="mods:namePart" content="William">
		<meta property="mods:type" content="given"/>
	</meta>
	<meta property="mods:namePart" content="Dr.">
		<meta property="mods:type" content="termsOfAddress"/>
	</meta>

displayForm

Can be used to retain the person's name as it appeared in the work, if different from the representation in the namePart class(es):

	<meta property="mods:displayForm" content="The Notorious Dr. Phibbs"/>

affiliation

Any affiliations to which the person belonged at the time the document was written:

	<meta property="mods:affiliation" content="Stonecutter"/>

role

The role subclass is used to impart the specific function that person played in the creation, such as author, editor, illustrator, etc.

The roleTerm property specifies the textual or coded version of the person's function, and can be used more than once:

	<meta property="mods:role">
		<meta property="mods:roleTerm" content="author">
			<meta property="mods:type" content="text"/>
		</meta>
		<meta property="mods:roleTerm" content="aut">
			<meta property="mods:type" content="code"/>
		</meta>
	</meta>

description

Textual description to further distinguish the name:

	<meta property="mods:description" content="Romantic poet"/>

language

The language the document is written in:

	<meta property="mods:language" content="fr-ca" scheme="iso639-3"/>

Languages must conform to either ISO 639-3 or RFC 3066.

identifier

At least one identifier is required for conformance with the standard.

A (unique) identifier for the document:

	<meta property="mods:identifier" content="9761012989743"/>

A type attribute should be included to specify the type of identifier being used:

	<meta property="mods:identifier" content="9761012989743">
		<meta property="mods:type" content="isbn13"/>
	</meta>

physicalDescription

The physicalDescription class can be used to record information about the original format of the document, if transcribing from another source. The primary use for DAISY production, however, is to record the page range being reproduced, which is accomplished through use of the extent property.

The physicalDescription class can contain the properties outlined in the following subsections. The properties must be contained within an physicalDescription class in order to be valid.

internetMediaType

MIME type of the original document:

	<meta property="mods:internetMediaType" content="application/xml"/>

extent

Page range of the original document:

	<meta property="mods:extent" content="i-xl and 1-392"/>

note

A textual note relating to the document:

	<meta property="mods:note" content="Translated from Russian"/>

A type property can be used to include more specific information about the type of note:

	<meta property="mods:note" content="He lived; he died.">
		<meta property="mods:type" content="biographical">
	</meta>

Although there is not a controlled list of values for the type property, a list of common values has been compiled by the MODS maintainers.

relatedItem

The relatedItem class is an encapsulating class which can wrap any of the classes mentioned above. The purpose of the relatedItem class is to allow producers to include repeated, but differing, information.

The most common use of this class in the DAISY context will be to differentiate publisher from producer information, as outlined in the originInfo class above.

A type property must be included in each relatedItem class added to your document to be valid. The type property must have one of the following values: original, preceding, succeeding, host, constituent, series, otherVersion, otherFormat or isReferencedBy.

	<meta typeof="mods:relatedItem">
		<meta property="mods:type" content="original"/>
		<meta typeof="mods:originInfo">
			<meta property="mods:publisher" content="Random House"/>
		</meta>
	</meta>

Meta Data Example

An excerpt of meta data from the World Cultures and Geography textbook has been presented in four different formats below for quick comparison. Although a simplistic example, it illustrates the variety of issues that will be encountered in preparing meta data in each of the possible new formats.

DAISY/NISO z39.86-5

<head>

	<meta name="dc:Title" content="World Cultures and Geography" />

	<meta name="dc:Creator" content="Sarah Witham Bednarz" />

	<meta name="dc:Creator" content="Inés M. Miyares" />

	<meta name="dc:Creator" content="Mark C. Schug" />

	<meta name="dc:Creator" content="Charles S. White" />

	<meta name="dc:Subject" content="Geography" />

	<meta name="dc:Description" content="Culture and geography textbook for highschool" />

	<meta name="dc:Publisher" content="DAISY Consortium" />

	<meta name="dc:Date" content="2005-01-14" />

	<meta name="dc:Type" content="Text" />

	<meta name="dc:Identifier" content="daisy-dtbook2005-exemplar-01" />

	<meta name="dc:Source" scheme="ISBN" content="0618168419" />

	<meta name="dc:Language" content="en" />

	<meta name="dtb:sourceDate" content="2003" />

	<meta name="dtb:sourceEdition" content="Hardcover print" />

	<meta name="dtb:sourcePublisher" content="McDougal Littell, Evanston, Illinois" />

	<meta name="dtb:revision" content="3" />

	<meta name="dtb:revisionDate" content="2005-07-27" />

</head>

RDFa

<head>
	<meta typeof="mods:titleInfo">
		<meta property="mods:title" content="World Cultures and Geography"/>
	</meta>
	
	<meta typeof="mods:name">
		<meta property="mods:namePart" content="Sarah Witham Bednarz"/>
		<meta property="mods:role">
			<meta property="mods:roleTerm" content="author">
				<meta property="mods:type" content="text"/>
			</meta>
		</meta>
	</meta>
	
	<meta typeof="mods:name">
		<meta property="mods:namePart" content="Inés M. Miyares"/>
		<meta property="mods:role">
			<meta property="mods:roleTerm" content="author">
				<meta property="mods:type" content="text"/>
			</meta>
		</meta>
	</meta>
	
	<meta typeof="mods:name">
		<meta property="mods:namePart" content="Mark C. Schug"/>
		<meta property="mods:role">
			<meta property="mods:roleTerm" content="author">
				<meta property="mods:type" content="text"/>
			</meta>
		</meta>
	</meta>
	
	<meta typeof="mods:name">
		<meta property="mods:namePart" content="Charles S. White"/>
		<meta property="mods:role">
			<meta property="mods:roleTerm" content="author">
				<meta property="mods:type" content="text"/>
			</meta>
		</meta>
	</meta>
	
	<meta typeof="mods:originInfo">
		<meta property="mods:publisher" content="DAISY Consortium"/>
		<meta property="mods:dateCreated" content="2005-01-14/>
		<meta property="mods:version" content="3"/>
		<meta property="mods:dateModified" content="2005-07-27"/>
	</meta>
	
	<meta typeof="mods:relatedItem">
		<meta property="mods:type" content="original"/>
		<meta typeof="mods:originInfo">
			<meta property="mods:place" content="Evanston, Illinois"/>
			<meta property="mods:publisher" content="McDougal Littell"/>
			<meta property="mods:creationDate" content="2003"/>
		</meta>
	</meta>
	
	<meta property="mods:identifier" content="daisy-dtbook2005-exemplar-01">
		<meta property="mods:type" content="uid"/>
	</meta>
	
	<meta property="mods:identifier" content="0618168419">
		<meta property="mods:type" content="isbn10"/>
	</meta>
	
	<meta property="mods:typeOfResource" content="text"/>
	
	<meta typeof="mods:physicalDescription">
		<meta property="mods:form" content="Hardcover print"/>
	</meta>
	
	<meta property="mods:subject" content="Geography"/>
	
	<meta property="mods:language" content="en"/>
	
	<meta property="mods:note" content="Culture and geography textbook for highschool">
		<meta property="mods:type" content="description"/>
	</meta>
	
</head>

RDF/XML

<head>
	<rdf:RDF
		xmlns:rdf="http://www.w3.org/1999/02/22-rdf-syntax-ns#"
		xml:mods="http://www.daisy.org/RDF/MODS">
		
		<rdf:Description rdf:ID="daisy-dtbook2005-exemplar-01">
		
			<mods:titleInfo>
				<mods:title>World Cultures and Geography</mods:title>
			</mods:titleInfo>
			
			<mods:name>
				<mods:namePart>Sarah Witham Bednarz</mods:namePart>
				<mods:role>
					<mods:roleTerm mods:type="text">author</mods:roleTerm>
				</mods:role>
			</mods:name>
			
			<mods:name>
				<mods:namePart>Inés M. Miyares</mods:namePart>
				<mods:role>
					<mods:roleTerm mods:type="text">author</mods:roleTerm>
				</mods:role>
			</mods:name>
			
			<mods:name>
				<mods:namePart>Mark C. Schug</mods:namePart>
				<mods:role>
					<mods:roleTerm mods:type="text">author</mods:roleTerm>
				</mods:role>
			</mods:name>
			
			<mods:name>
				<mods:namePart>Charles S. White</mods:namePart>
				<mods:role>
					<mods:roleTerm mods:type="text">author</mods:roleTerm>
				</mods:role>
			</mods:name>
			
			<mods:originInfo>
				<mods:publisher>DAISY Consortium</mods:publisher>
				<mods:dateCreated>2005-01-14</mods:dateCreated>
				<mods:version>3</mods:version>
				<mods:dateModified>2005-07-27</mods:dateModified>
			</mods:originInfo>
			
			<mods:relatedItem mods:type="original">
				<mods:originInfo>
					<mods:publisher>McDougal Littell</mods:publisher>
					<mods:place>Evanston, Illinois</mods:place>
					<mods:dateCreated>2003</mods:dateCreated>
				<mods:originInfo>
			</mods:relatedItem>
			
			<mods:identifier mods:type="isbn10">0618168419</mods:identifier>
			
			<mods:typeOfResource>text</mods:typeOfResource>
			
			<mods:physicalDescription>
				<mods:form>Hardcover print</mods:form>
			</mods:physicalDescription>
			
			<mods:subject>Geography</mods:subject>
			
			<mods:language>en</mods:language>
			
			<mods:note mods:type="description">Culture and geography textbook for highschool</mods:note>
			
		<rdf:Description>
	
	</rdf:RDF>
</head>

MODS XML

<head>
	<mods xmlns="http://www.loc.gov/mods/v3">
		<titleInfo>
			<title>World Cultures and Geography</title>
		</titleInfo>
		
		<name>
			<namePart>Sarah Witham Bednarz</namePart>
			<role>
				<roleTerm type="text">author</roleTerm>
			</role>
		</name>
		
		<name>
			<namePart>Inés M. Miyares</namePart>
			<role>
				<roleTerm type="text">author</roleTerm>
			</role>
		</name>
		
		<name>
			<namePart>Mark C. Schug</namePart>
			<role>
				<roleTerm type="text">author</roleTerm>
			</role>
		</name>
		
		<name>
			<namePart>Charles S. White</namePart>
			<role>
				<roleTerm type="text">author</roleTerm>
			</role>
		</name>
		
		<originInfo>
			<publisher>DAISY Consortium</publisher>
			<dateCreated>2005-01-14</dateCreated>
			<version>3</version>
			<dateModified>2005-07-27</dateModified>
		</originInfo>
		
		<relatedItem type="original">
			<originInfo>
				<publisher>McDougal Littell</publisher>
				<place>Evanston, Illinois</place>
				<dateCreated>2003</dateCreated>
			<originInfo>
		</relatedItem>
		
		<identifier type="uid">daisy-dtbook2005-exemplar-01</identifier>
		<identifier type="isbn10">0618168419</identifier>
		
		<typeOfResource>text</typeOfResource>
		
		<physicalDescription>
			<form>Hardcover print</form>
		</physicalDescription>
		
		<subject>Geography</subject>
		
		<language>en</language>
		
		<note type="description">Culture and geography textbook for highschool</note>
		
	</mods>
 </head>