Creators:
Jytte Hansen, Danish Bibliographic Centre
The goal of AC -
Administrative Components is to provide a practical tool for users of metadata
to manage metadata with special focus on interoperability between different
systems. This indicates the limitations of this metadata set: it is for
administration of metadata - not for administration of resources.
AC - Administrative
Components is developed within the framework of Dublin Core Metadata Initiative
Administrative Metadata Working Group 2001-2003.
Relation to other
initiatives:
The focus for AC -
Administrative Components metadata set is interoperability between systems with
content metadata. Other initiatives have others focuses. The word
"administrative" is in METS (Metadata Encoding & Transmission
Standard) used for management of digital library objects. Other related
functions are record keeping, resource management and preservation metadata.
OAI-PMH (The Open Archives
Initiative Protocol for Metadata Harvesting) includes some metadata elements
for administration. For users of OAI-PMH information such as identifier and
date will be handled by OAI-PMH and not AC.
None of these initiatives
meet all the requirements in relation to control interchange of metadata
records between systems. This is the reason for the present specification.
This document sets out a
three-part proposal for a standard for administrative metadata:
· Metadata for the entire record
· Metadata for update and change
· Metadata for batch interchange of records
One informative annex
complements it.
January 2006 updated with
new element “Source” and a link to an XML schema added in the end. Namespace
updated July 2012.
Specification
updated 27 January 2006.
Specification
updated 11 July 2012.
General rules
The name of this metadata
element set is Administrative Components.
The namespace is http://biblstandard.dk/ac/namespace/
All metadata elements are
optional and repeatable. A specific implementation can define additional rules
including that some elements are mandatory.
None of the elements are
specified as mandatory for all kinds of use of AC. It is up to the individual
project, organisation, web-site etc. to decide which elements are to be
mandatory. A tool for that can be an Application Profile to specify
instructions for use of Dublin Core, domain specific metadata element set(s)
and metadata about management of the content metadata - including e.g.
mandatory AC elements for specific use.
The idea is that the different projects, organisations, institutions etc. shall
pick up the elements they can use.
Definitions
Metadata for the entire record
Name: identifier
Label: Identifier
Definition: A string or a number, which identifies the metadata record
Comment: Can be the internal number in a database.
Name: source
Label: Source
Definition: A string or a number, which identifies recording entity
Comment: Can be a library code or an acronym for museum, archive etc..
Name: scope
Label: Scope
Definition: Declaration of the scope of application
Comment: Will often be declared by means of a separate form. This element can
be used either as unstructured text just with an
informal declaration like "national bibliography" or by using a
SCHEME for a formal declaration like "catalogue code".
Name: comment
Label: Comment
Definition: Comment on the Administrative Component metadata
Comment: E.g. comments pointing at special circumstances in connection with the
transmitted metadata
Name: location
Label: Metadata Location
Definition: An unambiguous reference to the content metadata within a given
context
Comment: This element is only used if the content metadata and administrative
metadata
are not in the same location.
Recommended best practice is to identify the content metadata by means of a
string or number conforming to a formal identification system. Examples of
formal identification systems include the Uniform Resource Identifier (URI)
(including the Uniform Resource Locator (URL)) and the Digital Object
Identifier (DOI).
Other identifiers, such as local repository/database keys, may be used.
Name: language
Label: Language
Definition: Language of metadata
Comment: Encoded ISO 8601, ISO 639-2.
Name: rights
Label: Rights Ownership
Definition: Information about rights held in and over the content metadata
Comment: Typically, the Rights element will contain a rights management
statement for the content metadata, or refer to a service providing such
information. For at more detailed control specific projects can use SCHEMEs for
administration of rights for the specific project.
Name: dateRange
Label: Valid Date Range
Definition: The start and/or end date of the validity of the content metadata
Comment: Content metadata accessed outside the date ranges should be considered
to be invalid.
Encoded to the W3C Profile of ISO 8601 including the use of the "/"
to indicate the range scope. For example, "/1999-12-31" indicates
validity up to 31 December 1999, "1999-01-01/" indicates validity
from 1 January 1999 onwards, and "1999-01-01/1999-12-31 indicates validity
between the two specified dates.
Name: handling
Label: Handling specification
Definition: Instructions for handling the administrative metadata and the
metadata record in full. To this element is attached a SCHEME
with the values:
· Harvest: the record shall be included in a harvesting
· Public: the content metadata must be shown to the public
· Manual: the metadata record must be checked automatically
· Keep: when adding administrative metadata, shall old versions of same element
be kept
· Mail: Mail to be sent
Comment: This element defines instructions of future actions. (See also
the element: Action)
Name: activity
Label: Activity
Definition: This element reflects an action performed on the content metadata
Comment: The element functions as a container, which connects an action (see
below) with the one responsible for its accomplishment, the date on wich the activity took place, etc.
Refinements
Name: action
Label: Action
Definition: The action performed on the content metadata by the responsible
entity
Comment: The actions are taken from a non-exhaustive list including:
created, submitted, modified, checked, link collected, resource harvested,
expired, mail sent and three codes for deleted: delete_error_record,
delete_disappearance and delete_out_of_scope
This list shows the history of actions. (See also the element: Handling).
Other sources may be used for the action values such as codes from the USMARC
Relator List.
To this element is attached a SCHEME TypeOfActivity
with the values:
• created
• submitted
• modified
• checked
• link-collected
• resource-harvested
• resource-disappeared
• expired
• mail-sent
• delete-error-record
• delete-disappearance
• delete-out-of-scope
Name: name
Label: Name
Definition: The name of the entity responsible for undertaking a defined action
on the content metadata
Comment: Examples of Name include a person, an organisation, or a service.
Where the person has an affiliation with an organisation, this information may
be included.
The name of a person should be provided in reverse order, that is, last name
before first name, with a comma separator.
Name: email
Label: Email Address
Definition: Electronic Mail address for the responsible entity
Comment: The email address must be encoded to be consistent with Internet
Address standard RFC822.
Name: contact
Label: Contact Information
Definition: Information on how to contact the responsible entity
Comment: The information should be one or more of: a street or postal address,
a telephone number, a facsimile number, an Internet address, or other forms of
physical or electronic contact information.
Links to full descriptions of the responsible entity may also be included, such
as name registries.
Name: date
Label: Date
Definition: The date on which the activity took place
Comment: Encoded to the W3C Profile of ISO 8601.
This unspecified date must be used in connection with an action, e.g.
"submitted"
Name: affiliation
Label: Affiliation
Definition: The organization with which the named person was associated when
involved with the resource
Comment: Often the "affiliation institution" will be the formally
responsible entity
Metadata for batch interchange of records
A number of elements
relevant in connection with data exchange via batch files
Name: database
Label: Database
Definition: Code identifying a database
Comment: The code is used to identify the database to which a batch file is
sent.
Is related to Metadata Location.
Name: transmitter
Label: Transmitter
Definition: Name or code for transmitter
Comment: The name/code (e.g. a library number) will be used to identify an
organization with which formal routines of data exchange are established.
A code may include the type of transmitter (e.g. public library, research library,
publisher)
Name: filename
Label: Filename
Definition: Name of a batch file
Comment: Name of the individual batch file. It may be combined with transmitter
name.
Name: technicalFormat
Label: Technical format
Definition: Technical data exchange format
Comment: The format is taken from a non-exhaustive list including:
ISO2709, XML, HTML
Name: characterSet
Label: Character set
Definition: Name of character set used
Comment: The character sets must refer to relevant standards
Name: bibliographicFormat
Label: Bibliographic format
Definition: Bibliographic format for data exchange
Comment: The format are taken from a non-exhaustive list including:
MARC21, danMARC2, DC
Name: resultFile
Label: Address of result file
Definition: Localization of result file
Comment: E.g. an email address of a transmitter
Link to XML Schema:
Actual version: http://biblstandard.dk/ac/schemas/ac_2011-09-01.xsd
Older superseded versions:
http://biblstandard.dk/ac/schemas/ac_2008-11-19.xsd
http://www.bs.dk/standards/schemas/ac_2005-09-01.xsd
Examples of Encoding in
XML: http://biblstandard.dk/ac/examples/