Internet-Draft: draft-kunze-rfc2413bis-06.txt J. Kunze Dublin Core Metadata University of California Expires 19 August 2007 T. Baker Dublin Core Metadata Initiative 19 February 2007 The Dublin Core Metadata Element Set (http://www.ietf.org/internet-drafts/draft-kunze-rfc2413bis-06.txt) Status of this Document By submitting this Internet-Draft, each author represents that any applicable patent or other IPR claims of which he or she is aware have been or will be disclosed, and any of which he or she becomes aware will be disclosed, in accordance with Section 6 of BCP 79. Internet-Drafts are working documents of the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF), its areas, and its working groups. Note that other groups may also distribute working documents as Internet- Drafts. Internet-Drafts are draft documents valid for a maximum of six months and may be updated, replaced, or obsoleted by other documents at any time. It is inappropriate to use Internet-Drafts as reference material or to cite them other than as "work in progress." The list of current Internet-Drafts can be accessed at http://www.ietf.org/1id-abstracts.html The list of Internet-Draft Shadow Directories can be accessed at http://www.ietf.org/shadow.html Distribution of this document is unlimited. Please send comments to jak@ucop.edu Copyright (C) The IETF Trust (2007). All Rights Reserved. Abstract Defines fifteen metadata elements for resource description in a cross-disciplinary information environment. 1. Introduction The Dublin Core Metadata Workshop Series began in 1995 with an invitational workshop which brought together librarians, digital library researchers, content experts, and text-markup experts to promote better discovery standards for electronic resources. The resulting metadata element set defines fifteen metadata elements for J. Kunze 1. Introduction [Page 1] Internet Draft Dublin Core Metadata February 2007 resource description in a cross-disciplinary information environment. This document contains the current text of Dublin Core "Version 1.1". Version 1.1 is the basis of ANSI/NISO Z39.85-2001 [Z39.85]. The text in the present RFC closely follows the text submitted for the 2007 revision of ANSI/NISO Z39.85, especially sections 2-6 and 10-12. The present RFC obsoletes the Internet RFC 2413 [RFC2413], which was the first published version of the Dublin Core ("Version 1.0"). The main differences between the present RFC and RFC 2413 are in the wording of definitions -- for Contributor and Date (semantically broadened), for Relation (clarified), and in general removing redundant references to "the content of" a resource. In addition, the present RFC recommends lowercase element names (consistent with RDF property types), remains silent about the unrestrictedness of element ordering and repeatability (application profiles being the proper place to discuss such topics), and references the current abstract model, vocabularies, and namespace policies in which the Dublin Core is embedded. 2. Foreword The Dublin Core Metadata Element Set is a vocabulary of fifteen properties for use in resource description. The name "Dublin" is due to its origin at a 1995 invitational workshop in Dublin, Ohio; "core" because its elements are broad and generic, usable for describing a wide range of resources. The fifteen element "Dublin Core" described in this standard is part of a larger set of metadata vocabularies and technical specifications maintained by the Dublin Core Metadata Initiative (DCMI). The full set of vocabularies, DCMI Metadata Terms [DCTERMS], also includes a set of resource classes, the DCMI Type Vocabulary [DCTYPE]. The terms in DCMI vocabularies are intended to be used in combination with terms from other, compatible vocabularies in the context of application profiles and on the basis of the DCMI Abstract Model [DCAM]. All changes made to terms of the Dublin Core Metadata Element Set since 2001 have been reviewed by a DCMI Usage Board in the context of a DCMI Namespace Policy [DCNMSPC]. The namespace policy describes how DCMI terms are assigned Uniform Resource Identifiers (URIs) and sets limits on the range of editorial changes that may allowably be made to the labels, definitions, and usage comments associated with existing DCMI terms. 3. Scope and Purpose The Dublin Core Metadata Element Set is a standard for cross-domain resource description. As in Internet RFC 3986 [RFC3986], "Uniform Resource Identifier (URI): Generic Syntax," this specification does not limit the scope of what might be a resource. J. Kunze 3. Scope and Purpose [Page 2] Internet Draft Dublin Core Metadata February 2007 The elements described in this standard are typically used in the context of an application profile which constrains or specifies their use in accordance with local or community-based requirements and policies. The specification of such implementation detail is outside the scope of this standard. 4. Definitions DCMI -- the Dublin Core Metadata Initiative, maintenance agency for Dublin Core Metadata Element Set. Lifecycle of a resource -- a sequence of events that mark the development and use of a resource. Some examples of events in a lifecycle are: conception of an invention, creation of a draft, revision of an article, publication of a book, acquisition by a library, transcription to magnetic disk, migration to optical storage, translation into English, and derivation of a new work (e.g., a movie). 5. The Element Set In the element descriptions below, each element has a descriptive label ("label") for human consumption and a unique token ("name") for use in machine processing. In accordance with the DCMI Namespace Policy [DCNMSPC], the "name" of an element is appended to a DCMI namespace URI to construct a Uniform Resource Identifier as a globally unique identifier for that element. The use of element names and URIs in the context of different implementation technologies is explained in DCMI Encoding Guidelines [DCENCOD]. 6. The Elements Element Name: title Label: Title Definition: A name given to the resource. Comment: Typically, Title will be a name by which the resource is formally known. Element Name: creator Label: Creator Definition: An entity primarily responsible for making the resource. Comment: Examples of a Creator include a person, an organization, or a service. Typically, the name of a Creator should be used to indicate the entity. J. Kunze 6. The Elements [Page 3] Internet Draft Dublin Core Metadata February 2007 Element Name: subject Label: Subject Definition: The topic of the resource. Comment: Typically, the topic will be represented using keywords, key phrases, or classification codes. Recommended best practice is to use a controlled vocabulary. To describe the spatial or temporal topic of the resource, use the Coverage element. Element Name: description Label: Description Definition: An account of the resource. Comment: Description may include but is not limited to: an abstract, a table of contents, a graphical representation, or a free-text account of the resource. Element Name: publisher Label: Publisher Definition: An entity responsible for making the resource available. Comment: Examples of a Publisher include a person, an organization, or a service. Typically, the name of a Publisher should be used to indicate the entity. Element Name: contributor Label: Contributor Definition: An entity primarily responsible for making contributions to the resource. Comment: Examples of a Contributor include a person, an organization, or a service. Typically, the name of a Contributor should be used to indicate the entity. Element Name: date Label: Date Definition: A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource. Comment: Date may be used to express temporal information at any level of granularity. Recommended best practice is to use an encoding scheme, such as the W3CDTF profile of ISO 8601 [W3CDTF]. Element Name: type Label: Type Definition: The nature or genre of the resource. Comment: Recommended best practice is to use a controlled J. Kunze 6. The Elements [Page 4] Internet Draft Dublin Core Metadata February 2007 vocabulary such as the the DCMI Type Vocabulary [DCTYPE]. To describe the file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource, use the Format element. Element Name: format Label: Format Definition: The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource. Comment: Examples of dimensions include size and duration. Recommended best practice is to use a controlled vocabulary such as the list of Internet Media Types [MIME]. Element Name: identifier Label: Identifier Definition: An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context. Comment: Recommended best practice is to identify the resource by means of a string conforming to a formal identification system. Element Name: source Label: Source Definition: The resource from which the described resource is derived. Comment: The described resource may be derived from the related resource in whole or in part. Recommended best practice is to identify the related resource by means of a string conforming to a formal identification system. Element Name: language Label: Language Definition: A language of the resource. Comment: Recommended best practice is to use a controlled vocabulary such as RFC 4646 [RFC4646]. Element Name: relation Label: Relation Definition: A related resource. Comment: Recommended best practice is to identify the related resource by means of a string conforming to a formal identification system. J. Kunze 6. The Elements [Page 5] Internet Draft Dublin Core Metadata February 2007 Element Name: coverage Label: Coverage Definition: The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant. Comment: Spatial topic may be a named place or a location specified by its geographic coordinates. Temporal period may be a named period, date, or date range. A jurisdiction may be a named administrative entity or a geographic place to which the resource applies. Recommended best practice is to use a controlled vocabulary such as the Thesaurus of Geographic Names [TGN]. Where appropriate, named places or time periods can be used in preference to numeric identifiers such as sets of coordinates or date ranges. Element Name: rights Label: Rights Definition: Information about rights held in and over the resource. Comment: Typically, rights information includes a statement about various property rights associated with the resource, including intellectual property rights. 7. Security Considerations The Dublin Core element set poses no risk to computers and networks. It poses minimal risk to searchers who obtain incorrect or private information due to careless mapping from rich data descriptions to the Dublin Core elements. No other security concerns are likely. 8. IANA Considerations This document has no actions for IANA. 9. Authors' Addresses John A. Kunze California Digital Library University of California, Office of the President 415 20th St, 4th Floor Oakland, CA 94612-3550, USA Fax: +1 510-893-5212 EMail: jak@ucop.edu Thomas Baker Director, Specifications and Documentation Dublin Core Metadata Initiative c/o OCLC Research J. Kunze 9. Authors' Addresses [Page 6] Internet Draft Dublin Core Metadata February 2007 Dublin, OH 43017, USA Email: tbaker@tbaker.de 10. References [DCAM] DCMI Abstract Model. http://dublincore.org/documents/abstract-model/ [DCENCOD] DCMI Encoding Guidelines. http://dublincore.org/resources/expressions/ [DCNMSPC] DCMI Namespace Policy. http://dublincore.org/documents/dcmi-namespace/ [DCTERMS] DCMI Metadata Terms. http://dublincore.org/documents/dcmi-terms/ [DCTYPE] DCMI Type Vocabulary. http://dublincore.org/documents/dcmi-type-vocabulary/ [ISO3166] ISO 3166 - Codes for the representation of names of countries. http://www.din.de/ [MIME] Internet Media Types. http://www.iana.org/assignments/media-types/ [RDF] Resource Description Framework. http://www.w3.org/RDF/ [RFC4646] Tags for Identifying Languages, Internet RFC 4646. http://www.ietf.org/rfc/rfc4646.txt [RFC3986] Uniform Resource Identifier (URI): Generic Syntax, Internet RFC 3986. http://www.ietf.org/rfc/rfc3986.txt [RFC2413] Dublin Core Metadata for Resource Discovery. Internet RFC 2413. http://www.ietf.org/rfc/rfc2413.txt [RFC2731] Encoding Dublin Core Metadata in HTML. Internet RFC 2731. http://www.ietf.org/rfc/rfc2731.txt [TGN] Getty Thesaurus of Geographic Names. http://www.getty.edu/research/tools/vocabulary/tgn/index.html [W3CDTF] Date and Time Formats, W3C Note. http://www.w3.org/TR/NOTE-datetime [Z39.85] ANSI/NISO Standard Z39.85-2001 - The Dublin Core Metadata Element Set. http://www.niso.org/standards/resources/Z39-85.pdf J. Kunze 10. References [Page 7] Internet Draft Dublin Core Metadata February 2007 11. Appendix A: Further Reading (This appendix is not part of the standard. It is included for information only.) Further information about the Dublin Core metadata element set is available at the URL, http://dublincore.org/ This web site contains information about workshops, reports, working group papers, projects, and new developments concerning the Dublin Core Metadata Initiative (DCMI). 12. Appendix B: Maintenance Agency (This appendix is not part of the standard. It is included for information only.) The Dublin Core Metadata Initiative (DCMI) is responsible for the development, standardization, and promotion of the Dublin Core metadata element set. Information on DCMI is available at the URL, http://dublincore.org/ 13. Copyright Notice Copyright (C) The IETF Trust (2007). This document is subject to the rights, licenses and restrictions contained in BCP 78, and except as set forth therein, the authors retain all their rights. This document and the information contained herein are provided on an "AS IS" basis and THE CONTRIBUTOR, THE ORGANIZATION HE/SHE REPRESENTS OR IS SPONSORED BY (IF ANY), THE INTERNET SOCIETY, THE IETF TRUST AND THE INTERNET ENGINEERING TASK FORCE DISCLAIM ALL WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO ANY WARRANTY THAT THE USE OF THE INFORMATION HEREIN WILL NOT INFRINGE ANY RIGHTS OR ANY IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. Expires 19 August 2007 J. Kunze 13. Copyright Notice [Page 8]