Research and usage of collection level metadata in Chinese digital libraries

Abstract

The World Wide Web and other information technologies have deeply changed our information environment and influenced how we index and access the information we need. The library is a good example of this revolution. Instead of a building that holds books, the library is evolving into an electronic portal to digital materials from across the globe. Facing so many distributed and heterogeneous digital resources, layered metadata are efficient but sophisticated tools that make it easier to find the best information resources. In recent years many types of item-level metadata with which people are familiar have appeared. In contrast to item-level metadata, collection level metadata has not been broadly used, especially in China. By illustrating what a collection is and why we should create collection level metadata, we introduce the research and usage of collection level metadata in China and analyze the problems and limitations of the metadata being used. Some suggestions as to its use are also mentioned.