Cataloging Futures

More on LC's Bibliographic Framework Initiative: Kevin Ford's presentation

Last week, Kevin Ford (who works in LC's Network Development and MARC Standards Office (NDMSO)) presented on LC's Bibliographic Framework Initiative at the Semantic Web in Libraries conference in Cologne, Germany.

Here's the abstract:

This presentation will provide a general update about the Library of Congress's Bibliographic Framework Initiative, including a short synopsis of its historical import, information about the attractiveness of Linked Data, and details about the work – models, tools, and findings - completed to date about transitioning from a MARC-based environment to a new bibliographic ecology. The general update about the Bibliographic Framework Initiative will include work and progress since the Library's update at the American Library Association Annual Conference in Anaheim in June. The first phase of the Initiative is complete. Among many objectives set for the initial phase, the most relevant outcome is the presentation of a draft model for community appraisal and on which to further build. Because an open process is desirable and expected, the community will already have seen the draft model, but this forum will provide an opportunity to go into greater detail, present the outcomes as a cohesive whole, and explore the ramifications and future directions stemming from the initial stage. Linked Data methods and strategies are proving to provide a very consistent yet flexible means to communicate data, which has always been one of the main aims of the MARC communication formats.

The presentation is available in two formats: video and slides [pdf].

I'd recommend the video if you really want to get a good understanding of the work of this important initiative for the future of cataloging and library metadata.

(Update: The video works fine with Chrome or Firefox, but not Internet Explorer.)

LC Bibliographic Framework Transition: Eric Miller's update forum

The Library of Congress recently posted a webcast: Library of Congress New Bibliographic Framework Initiative: Update Forum with Eric Miller. This is LC's initiative to develop a replacement for the MARC format.

The new bibliographic framework transition initiative will be focused on the Web environment, Linked Data principles and mechanisms, and the Resource Description Framework (RDF) as a basic data model. Zepheira, led by Eric Miller, has been active in the development of Semantic Web and library standards as well as open source tools to support linked data technologies and library applications. Zepheira will provide both a model (or models) to serve as a starting point for discussion and an analysis of related initiatives. Miller spoke to Library of Congress staff with an overview of the project and a report of progress to date.

In this webcast, Eric Miller describes the transition away from MARC as an evolution, not a revolution. It's a very interesting talk on how Zepheira is developing a linked data model that "deconstructs" and repurposes the valuable entities, subjects, etc. that are already contained in MARC records.

My persistent question, which I haven't seen an answer to yet is: Why at such an early stage of data modeling are we narrowing in on Linked Data? Shouldn't we be looking at a variety of models for a MARC replacement?

Controlled vocabularies: more than just words

I think this quote from an article titled "More Than Words" nicely describes some of the goals behind library linked data:

... Over the past decade, a bioinformatics specialization called biomedical ontology has grown up around this question. Most biomedical researchers are familiar with standard terminologies, such as Medical Subject Headings. These are sometimes called ontologies, but true ontologies are more than just controlled terms. They capture, in a logical, systematic way, what scientists regard as the basic truths about a topic. Like equations in physics or axioms in mathematics, they can even be the basis for computational models. When connected to databases, scientific papers, and software applications, ontologies "help cope with the ever-growing, chaotic accumulation of text and facts" in biomedical and translational research. They do this by making data sharing, retrieval, and validation easier, says Stefan Schulz, a professor at the Medical University of Graz in Austria.

h/t Linked Data and URI:s for Enterprises

The Library 2.0 Gang on semantic web and linked data

Another excellent conversation from The Library 2.0 Gang. The topic is one that's important for the future of cataloging and metadata: the semantic web and linked data. Karen Coyle is the guest for this discussion.

BTW, I finally own a smartphone and am unfettered from my desktop computer. So, I hope to be able to listen to and recommend more podcasts in the future. Cataloging professional development on-the-go!

Dan Chudnov on linked data and libraries

Last week Dan Chudnov gave an excellent presentation on linked data: Better Living through Linking. Check it out.

TCDL 2009 keynote: Better living through linking

View more Microsoft Word documents from Dan Chudnov.

Via One Big Library

LCSH goes Web 3.0

I was having so much fun seeing "my old friends," the Library of Congress Subject Headings, in their new home: Library of Congress Authorities & Vocabularies that I almost forgot to get ready for work this morning!

LCSH as a linked data service, to quote Jonathan Rochkind, "is AWESOME."

Richard Wallis writes:

Overnight this uri ‘http://id.loc.gov/authorities/sh85042531’ has now become the globally available, machine and human readable, reliable source for the description for the subject heading of ‘Elephants’ containing links to its related terms (in a way that both machines and humans can navigate). This means that system developers and integrators can rely upon that link to represent a concept, not necessarily the way they want to [locally] describe it.  This should facilitate the ability for disparate systems and services to simply share concepts and therefore understanding – one of the basic principles behind the Semantic Web.

Metadata issues in the forefront for 2009

I really like Eric Lease Morgan's Top Tech Trends for ALA Mid-Winter, 2009. Several trends deal with metadata:

• Linked data
• Word/tag clouds
• data ownership

I will try to link to some of the interesting blogging coming out of the 2009 ALA Midwinter Meeting. Stay tuned.