2.1.2 Why metadata?

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2.1 Introduction to Metadata

2.1.1 What is metadata?
2.1.2 Why metadata?
2.1.3 What can you do with it?
2.1.4 Where can you find metadata?
2.1.5 Applications
2.1.6 Discovery discovery

2.2 Metadata standards

2.2.1 What is a standard for?
2.2.2 Standards for geo-information
2.2.3 Metadata standards
2.2.4 INSPIRE
2.2.5 Discovery standards

2.3 Metadata in the working process

2.3.1 How do you make metadata?
2.3.2 How do you make metadata from services?
2.3.3 Where in the working process?
2.3.4 Tips for gathering metadata
2.3.5 Publishing metadata
2.3.6 Harvesting
2.3.7 Validating
2.3.8 Discovery working process

2.4 Metadata elements

2.4.0 Overview of metadata elements
2.4.1 Title of the resource
2.4.2 Summary
2.4.3 Status
2.4.4 Level of hierarchy
2.4.5 URL
2.4.6 Protocol
2.4.7 Name
2.4.8 Unique Identifier of the resource
2.4.9 Language of the resource
2.4.10 Subject
2.4.11 Keyword
2.4.12 Thesaurus
2.4.13 Thesaurus date
2.4.14 Thesaurus date type
2.4.15 Minimum x-coordinate
2.4.16 Maximum x-coordinate
2.4.17 Minimum y-coordinate
2.4.18 Maximum y-coordinate
2.4.19 Temporal cover
2.4.20 Date of the resource
2.4.21 Date type of the resource
2.4.22 Grade of the description of quality
2.4.23 General description of origin
2.4.24 Scale of application
2.4.25 Resolution
2.4.26 Code Reference system
2.4.27 Responsible organisation for namespace reference system
2.4.28 Conformity indication with the specification
2.4.29 Clarification
2.4.30 Specification
2.4.31 Specification date
2.4.32 Specification date type
2.4.33 Legal restrictions to accessibility
2.4.34 Other constraints
2.4.35 Security restrictions
2.4.36 User constraints
2.4.37 Responsible organisation resource
2.4.38 Responsible organisation resource: email
2.4.39 Responsible organisation resource: role
2.4.40 Metadata unique identifier
2.4.41 Parent unique identifier
2.4.42 Responsible organisation metadata
2.4.43 Responsible organisation metadata: role
2.4.44 Responsible organisation metadata: email
2.4.45 Metadata date
2.4.46 Language of the metadata
2.4.47 Metadata standard name
2.4.48 Metadata Standard version
2.4.49 Discovery metadata for data

2.5 Metadata elements for services

2.5.0 Metadata elements for services overview
2.5.1 Resource Title
2.5.2 Resource abstract
2.5.3 Resource type
2.5.4 Resource locator
2.5.5 Connect Point Linkage
2.5.6 Coupled resource
2.5.7 Scoped Name
2.5.8 Coupling Type
2.5.9 Spatial data service type
2.5.10 Service Type Version
2.5.11 Operation Name
2.5.12 DCP
2.5.13 Keyword value
2.5.14 Originating controlled vocabulary
2.5.15 Geographic location
2.5.16 Temporal Reference
2.5.17 Spatial resolution
2.5.18 Degree
2.5.19 Specification
2.5.20 Constraints
2.5.21 Conditions applying to access and use
2.5.22 Responsible party
2.5.23 Responsible party role
2.5.24 Metadata point of contact
2.5.25 Metadata language
2.5.26 Metadata date
2.5.27 The link to the metadata of the dataset and dataset series from the service
2.5.28 Discovery metadata for services

2.6 What you should also know

2.6.1 Bordering rectangle
2.6.2 Reference system
2.6.3 Geo shared licence
2.6.4 Optional set metadata of data
2.6.5 Multilingual metadata
2.6.6 Object and attribute information
2.6.7 Guidelines for sectors
2.6.8 Exchanging metadata



Voorbeeld van een blikje zonder label

Take the example of a tin without a label on it. If you saw a shelf full of tins like this in a shop and bought one of them, when you got home you would only have a partial impression of what you had bought, based on its colour, smell and taste. You would also have to find out whether it was still safe to eat it or not, based on the smell and the way it looks. You would only know, on a theoretical basis, whether there were any ingredients in it that you might not like or that you were allergic to. You would never be able to find out who had made this product either. That is why most of us wouldn’t buy a tin like this.


This is also true for data. If you don’t know what it represents, which topic it concerns, who made the data, what the quality of the recording is, then only the producer of this data would be able to find and use it.

Metadata describes the geographic dataset in such a way that search commands can focus on questions such as ‘who, what, where, when, why and how’. Metadata contains details about the owner of the geographic data, quality, validity, etc., and how it can be traced and used.

The growing need for information has led to the development of a lot of geographic datasets, series and services offering a wide range of subjects, themes and approaches. The consequence of this proliferation of geographic datasets (the estimation for the Netherlands was approx. 200,000 in 2007) is that users of geographic information find that it is becoming harder and harder to find the information they want from datasets.

With the rise of Services Oriented Architecture it has become necessary to record the metadata in the datasets and services. Because services can then be addressed directly, one requires far less contact with the holder of the resource to be able to obtain more information about the data and has the need for metadata increased.

In the guideline 2.2.4 INSPIRE metadata relating to environmental themes are also made mandatory by law.

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