RDA - an updated overview

27
RDA 101 What is RDA Where we are Why are we doing RDA How is different? What is a RDA record? Prepared for DBM/UGA, Robin Fay, @georgiawebgurl Robin Fay @georgiawebgurl

Transcript of RDA - an updated overview

Page 1: RDA -  an updated overview

RDA 101What is RDAWhere we are Why are we doing RDAHow is different?What is a RDA record?

Prepared for DBM/UGA, Robin Fay, @georgiawebgurl

Robin Fay @georgiawebgurl

Page 2: RDA -  an updated overview

RDA 101 : WHAT IS RDA?

RDA is Resource Description Access

o It is a new set of cataloging rules which will replace AACR2 (Anglo American Cataloging Rules 2nd edition)

o It impacts the bibliographic data (the metadata, the descriptive content within our library catalog records) changing what INFORMATION we put into a record not the framework or the structure (for now)

o It impacts authority data - authority records (through FRAD) and will impact subject access (subject headings) through FRSAD (not finished yet) ; more on these later….

Robin Fay @georgiawebgurl

Page 3: RDA -  an updated overview

RDA 101 : WHERE WE ARE (WERE)

• When a cataloger creates a new record, they used to use AACR2 (and some still do!) along with their thesauri for controlled vocabularies (a list or manual such as the LCSH, aka Library of Congress Subject Headings) to determine what content (text) to put into the bibliographic record. RDA is an updated version of the “rules” which are more flexible and more adept at addressing digital and electronic materials. Given their flexibility (choices), they are now referenced as guidelines.

• RDA tells catalogers how to describe what a book (or item is) - how to you determine the title? The publishing information? How do you record the publication date? This information will be our record bibliographic data, our descriptive metadata.

Robin Fay @georgiawebgurl

Page 4: RDA -  an updated overview

RDA 101 : WHERE WE ARE (WERE)

But we have 2 more players in the mix…

• MARC• ISBD

• And then there’s a 3rd… crosswalking metadata to and from different databases… (our future!)

Robin Fay @georgiawebgurl

Page 5: RDA -  an updated overview

RDA 101 : WHERE WE ARE (WERE)

• Bibliographic records are structured in MARC (a programming language). MARC (MAchine Readable Code) and AACR2 have been working together a long time which means that compromises and workarounds have sometimes be made.

• MARC is a mixture of controlled access points (series, name authority and subject headings + free text (e.g., contents notes). This provides flexibility and structure but> More free text = less precision in searching = more work for systems to return relevant results

Robin Fay @georgiawebgurl

Page 6: RDA -  an updated overview

RDA 101 : WHERE WE ARE (WERE)

• MARC existed before AACR2. MARC was developed in the 1960s before most digital technology existed – the web as we know it, ebooks, and Google, did not exist.

• Most current catalog systems use MARC, but there are other metadata schemas and programming languages.

• Although many systems have not fully utilized all of the fields and functionalities of MARC, it is reaching the end of its lifespan.

• The next generation (nexgen) systems can not develop as only MARC based; we need more.

Robin Fay @georgiawebgurl

Page 7: RDA -  an updated overview

RDA 101 : WHERE WE ARE (WERE)

• Our future systems will probably not use MARC, but some kind of semantic web friendly schema.

• Currently, the Library of Congress has started a project

called the Bibliographic Framework Transition Initiative• Why?

• We need something that is more flexible, not flat in file structure, yet works with a semantic framework.

• We need something that works better with different metadata schemas.

• This new framework will provide us with enormous functionality in our catalogs and allow us to fully use RDA. It will allow us to move forward into the semantic web world.

Robin Fay @georgiawebgurl

Page 8: RDA -  an updated overview

RDA 101 : WHERE WE ARE (WERE)

• A brief aside:• What is the semantic web? • The semantic web (sometimes, Web 3.0) allows us to have a

customized experience on the web using any device that has data and internet capabilities (smart phones, tablets, laptops, ipods, desktops, etc.)

• It allows us to have better search results – personalized, with better relevance and filtering.

• It works for us.• This is a great overview of how the semantic web might work :

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bsNcjya56v8

Robin Fay @georgiawebgurl

Page 9: RDA -  an updated overview

RDA 101 : WHERE WE ARE (WERE)

• RDA was created with digital objects in mind; while at the same time not ignoring traditional materials in libraries, like books and serials.

• RDA has a wider library view, in that the groups working on it, reached out to museums and archives communities (who often use different metadata schemas and cataloging rules).

• RDA is based upon a semantic web data model FRBR (Functional Requirements for Bibliographic Records). This model allows the development of more relationships between records.

Robin Fay @georgiawebgurl

Page 10: RDA -  an updated overview

RDA 101 : WHERE WE ARE (WERE)

• We have some relationships within our library catalog via the bibliographic data – bib-holding-item (a way to keep all of the parts of a particular thing together)

• Bib to authority –series-subject headings (a bib record having linking field(s) to another record(s))

• Authority records – records not visible to the public, but provide the linking points to our bib records and guide the user through variations of the name or title, etc.

Robin Fay @georgiawebgurl

Page 11: RDA -  an updated overview

RDA 101 : WHERE WE ARE (WERE)

• FRBR will give us a way to group things in different ways building relationships between data – by WEMI (Work, Expression, Manifestation, Item)

• WEMI is a hierarchy from abstract to the actual thing owned by a library (the well… item!)

• Work and Expression can be somewhat conceptual with lots of discussion going on; however, you can loosely think of Work as a concept or idea which is Expressed (think the act of creation; performance) onto/into a physical format (can be digital) aka a Manifestation, of which the library has a copy (Item).

Robin Fay @georgiawebgurl

Page 12: RDA -  an updated overview

RDA 101 : WHERE WE ARE (WERE)

• What a FRBRized catalog should give us is better searching tools and enable to see editions more easily; see related titles in different media (e.g., easier to find the work “Dracula” regardless of its physical format – its manifestation).

• Since FRBR is a data model built on a semantic web framework, it will also enable us to have better, more robust, more semantic web like search tools (like our catalogs).

• ..while FRBR influenced RDA and FRSAD (Functional Requirements for Subject Authority Data)

Robin Fay @georgiawebgurl

Page 13: RDA -  an updated overview

Remember MARC = Machine Readable Cataloging

MARC coding is used for bibliographic & holdings records

RDA 101 : Where we are (were)

Robin Fay @georgiawebgurl

Page 14: RDA -  an updated overview

Here we see MARC fields:

100 field

245

250 (edition)

260 (publisher)

300 (description)

and 6XX (subject headings).

An OPAC brief view for a monograph (book): Hot links will

take the user to the author record, or browse by subjects.

Robin Fay @georgiawebgurl

Page 15: RDA -  an updated overview

By clicking on Technical view button in the OPAC, we see

the full MARC record, including indicators and delimiters.

MARC TAG (also the MARC field number) is the first 3

digits, e.g., 100

Indicators are the two following characters which affect

indexing and filing by the computer. In this case the 245

14, tells the computer: The title is The broker, but begin

index/filing at B for broker. In other words, skip 3

characters + 1(for the blank space) to find the first ‘real’

word.

| is a delimiter which is a designator for the beginning of

the field and is subcoded with a specific alpha character |c

indicates statement of responsibility

Robin Fay @georgiawebgurl

Page 16: RDA -  an updated overview

An example of a MARC field.

245 10 Calm energy : ‡b how people regulate mood with food and exercise / ‡c

Robert E. Thayer.

MARC Tag

Delimiter

2nd

indicator

1st

indicator

Tags represent textual names

They’re divided by

hundreds: e.g., 100, etc.

Robin Fay @georgiawebgurl

Page 17: RDA -  an updated overview

RDA 101 : WHERE WE ARE (WERE)

• ISBD punctuation also impacts MARC.

• " Standardized punctuation (colons, semicolons, slashes, dashes, commas, and periods) is used to identify and separate the elements and areas."

Robin Fay @georgiawebgurl

Page 18: RDA -  an updated overview

RDA 101 : WHERE WE ARE (WERE)

• So > Example MARC field

Robin Fay @georgiawebgurl

Page 19: RDA -  an updated overview

RDA 101 : WHERE WE ARE (WERE)

• So > Example MARC field

Robin Fay @georgiawebgurl

Page 20: RDA -  an updated overview

RDA 101 : WHERE WE ARE (WERE)

• So > Example MARC field

Robin Fay @georgiawebgurl

Page 21: RDA -  an updated overview

RDA 101 : WHERE WE ARE (WERE)

• So > Example MARC field

Robin Fay @georgiawebgurl

Page 22: RDA -  an updated overview

RDA 101 : WHERE WE WERE

• Where we were:• Outdated rules (AACR2) that were developed to meet the

needs of a print card catalog and were developed before the rise of electronic medium and the web

• SOO... we have had to adapt and stretch AACR2 to address the needs of those unique materials

Robin Fay @georgiawebgurl

Page 23: RDA -  an updated overview

RDA 101 : WHERE WE WERE

• Where we were:• In terms of MARC, while it is a structured language, it has

limits. It is structured at the highest level but within individual fields, it is less structured in terms of content.

• We rely heavily on free text areas (such as title fields and notes fields) to communicate information.

• While free text fields are guided by rules (AACR2) they are not controlled access points.

Robin Fay @georgiawebgurl

Page 24: RDA -  an updated overview

RDA 101 : WHERE WE WERE

• As the web grew, our library databases and catalog became more sophisicated. Even then, our systems could not always use all of the MARC fields to the fullest capacity but in the meantime mobile and web become predominant tools and our users expect to be able to use our library data differently (more Google like)

Robin Fay @georgiawebgurl

Page 25: RDA -  an updated overview

RDA 101 : WHERE WE WERE

• As the web grew, our library databases and catalog became more sophisicated. Even then, our systems could not always use all of the MARC fields to the fullest capacity but in the meantime mobile and web become predominant tools and our users expect to be able to use our library data differently (more Google like)

• RDA will allow us to better address our users needs• More granular (refined) searching especially for electronic,

multimedia, or mixed media• More modern concept of creatorship vs. authorship – more than

books! • More flexibility to meet the needs of different communities

Robin Fay @georgiawebgurl

Page 26: RDA -  an updated overview

RDA 101 : WHERE WE WERE

• However, much of the “good” of RDA is predicated on our systems being able to use it and effectively display it to our users.

Robin Fay @georgiawebgurl

Page 27: RDA -  an updated overview

Robin Fay @georgiawebgurl