Showing papers on "Meta Data Services published in 2008"

Methods And Systems For Managing Data

Abstract: Systems and methods for managing data, such as metadata. In one exemplary method, metadata from files created by several different software applications are captured, and the captured metadata is searched. The type of information in metadata for one type of file differs from the type of information in metadata for another type of file. Other methods are described and data processing systems and machine readable media are also described.

Discovering peer-to-peer content using metadata streams

Abstract: Discovering peer-to-peer content using metadata streams involves capturing, for each of a plurality of devices, a content and metadata stream that describes a context of the content. The metadata streams are sent to a metadata repository contemporaneously with the capture of the content by the respective devices. Network queries of the streaming metadata are enable via the metadata repository, and, in response to the network queries, peer-to-peer access of the content is facilitated from one or more of the devices.

Common interface to access catalog information from heterogeneous databases

Abstract: Various embodiments of a system and computer program product to access metadata from a plurality of data servers from a federated database management system are provided. In one embodiment, a request for metadata, from a client application, is received by the federated database management system. Data servers which are accessible from the federated database management system are identified. For each data server, metadata describing data of a data source of that data server is retrieved in accordance with the application request. The retrieved metadata from each of the data servers is aggregated to produce an aggregated result in a uniform format. The aggregated result is provided. In another embodiment, for each data server, a source metadata request for metadata of that data server is generated in accordance with the application request and a source metadata application programming interface. A view is created based on the source metadata request for metadata for each data server.

System for managing media content

Abstract: A system that incorporates teachings of the present disclosure may include, for example, a device having a controller to create metadata corresponding to an identity of an entity, incorporate in a media file the metadata that identifies the entity with metadata that describes media content in the media file, and present a graphical user interface depicting a media file directory structure generated according to the metadata that identifies the entity and the metadata that describes media content in the media file. Other embodiments are disclosed.

Computer implemented system and method for the generation of data access applications

Abstract: A method and architecture is described that discovers software application metadata and generates data access applications based on the discovered software application metadata. The discovered metadata along with handcrafted metadata goes through a discovery process and is converted into common, generic abstract metadata objects. The abstract metadata objects then go through an instantiation process to be translated into concrete metadata objects that represent the unique configuration, context and terminology of the source software application. The concrete metadata objects can be generated into numerous forms for the purposes of data access and information sharing. The system also has upgrade protection.

Customizable metadata merging framework

Abstract: One embodiment of the present invention provides a system that facilitates merging different versions of a database object. During operation, the system receives metadata associated with a first version of a database object and a second version of the database object. The system then compares metadata associated with the first version with metadata associated with the second version to create a difference report. Next, the system uses the different report to create an action plan that specifies how to merge the metadata associated with the first and second versions of the metadata object.

Introduction to metadata

Abstract: Metadata, literally 'data about data,' provides a means of indexing, accessing, preserving, and discovering digital resources. The sheer quantity of digital information available over electronic networks has created a pressing need for standards that assist in locating, retrieving, and managing this vast and complex universe of information."Introduction to Metadata" provides readers with an overview of metadata, its types, roles, and characteristics; a discussion of metadata as it relates to resources on the Web; and a description of methods, tools, and standards, and protocols used to publish and disseminate digital collections.Also included in this fully revised and updated edition is an essay on the importance of standards-based rights metadata to the activities of cultural institutions, and an exploration of metadata harvesting and the role of Google and other commercial search engines in the rapidly evolving world of digital libraries.

Metadata collection system, content management server, metadata collection apparatus, metadata collection method and program

Abstract: In a metadata collection system comprising a plurality of content management servers each capable of managing content and content metadata as local content and managing content metadata stored in another content management server as reference content and a metadata collection apparatus connected with the plurality of content management servers to collect metadata from the plurality of content management servers, the metadata collection apparatus collects metadata from the individual content management servers based upon server information held at the content management servers and category identifiers appended to tree structures generated at the content management servers by individually referencing the plurality of content management servers.

Implicitly associating metadata using user behavior

Abstract: Social media networking applications, web sites, and services creates implicit relationships between users based on their interest or participation in real-world and optionally virtual or online activities in addition to explicitly defined peer relationships. User profiles, activity entities, and expressions may be associated with metadata to assist in searching and navigation. Metadata is implicitly associated with user profiles, activity entities, expressions, or other data entities based on user behavior using metadata collector. A metadata collector is a poll, survey, list, questionnaire, census, test, game, or other type of presentation adapted to solicit user interaction. A metadata collector is associated with metadata elements. When users interact with a metadata collector, their user profiles and the data entities included in their interactions become associated with the metadata elements of the metadata collector. These metadata element associations may then be used for any purpose.

A conceptual framework for metadata quality assessment

Abstract: Metadata quality of digital resources in a repository is an issue directly associated with the repository's efficiency and value In this paper, the subject of metadata quality is approached by introducing a new conceptual framework that defines it in terms of its fundamental components Additionally, a method for assessing these components by exploiting structural and semantic relations among the resources is presented These relations can be used to generate implied logic rules, which include, impose or prohibit certain values in the fields of a metadata record The use of such rules can serve as a tool for conducting quality control in the records, in order to diagnose deficiencies and errors

Metadata Quality: From Evaluation to Augmentation

Abstract: The conversation about metadata quality has developed slowly in libraries, hindered by unexamined assumptions about metadata carrying over from experience in the MARC environment. In the wider world, discussions about functionality must drive discussions about how quality might be determined and ensured. Because the quality-enforcing structures present in the MARC world–mature standards, common documentation, and bibliographic utilities–are lacking in the metadata world, metadata practitioners desiring to improve the quality of metadata used in their libraries must develop and proliferate their own processes of evaluation and transformation to support essential interoperability. In this article, the author endeavors to describe how those processes might be established and sustained to support metadata quality improvement.

The OAI2LOD Server: Exposing OAI-PMH Metadata as Linked Data

Abstract: Many institutions grant access to their metadata repositories via the Open Archives Initiative Protocol for Metadata Harvesting (OAI-PMH). However, this protocol has two signicant drawbacks: it does not make its resources accessible via dereferencable URIs, and it provides only restricted means of selective access to metadata. The OAI2LOD Server handles these shortcomings by republishing metadata originating from an OAI-PMH endpoint according to the principles of Linked Data. As the ongoing OAI-ORE specication process shows, these principles are gaining growing importance also in the digital libraries domain.

Automatic Extraction of Pedagogic Metadata from Learning Content

Abstract: Annotating learning material with metadata allows easy reusability by different learning/tutoring systems. Several metadata standards have been developed to represent learning objects and courses. A learning system needs to use pedagogic attributes including document type, topic, coverage of concepts, and for each concept the significance and the role. Moreover, in order to have a flexible and reusable repository of e-learning materials, it is necessary that the annotation of the documents with such metadata be done in an automatic fashion as far as possible. This paper describes the attributes that represent some important pedagogic characteristics of learning materials. To reduce the overhead of manual annotation we have explored the feasibility of automatic annotation of learning materials with metadata. This facilitates the creation of an elearning open repository for storing these annotated learning materials, which can be used by learning systems. The automatic annotation is based on a domain knowledge base and a number of algorithms like standard classification algorithms, parsing and analysis of documents have been used for this purpose. The results show a fair degree of accuracy, which may be improved in future using more sophisticated algorithms.

Dublin Core Metadata Harvested Through OAI-PMH

Abstract: The introduction in 2001 of the Open Archives Initiative Protocol for Metadata Harvesting (OAI-PMH) increased interest in and awareness of metadata quality issues relevant to digital library interoperability and the use of harvested metadata to build “union catalogs” of digital information resources. Practitioners have offered wide-ranging advice to metadata authors and have suggested metrics useful for measuring the quality of shareable metadata. Is there evidence of changes in metadata practice in response to such advice and/or as a result of an increased awareness of the importance of metadata interoperability? This paper looks at metadata records created over a six-year period that have been harvested by the University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign, and reports on quantitative and qualitative analyses of changes observed over time in shareable metadata quality.

Flexible multi-tenant support of metadata extensions

Abstract: A system may include reception, from a client, of a request for access to an instance of an object model, identification of extension metadata associated with the object model and associated with the client in a metadata repository, identification of client-independent metadata of the object model in the metadata repository, merging of the client-independent metadata and the extension metadata associated with the client to create a merged object model, and access of the instance based on the merged object model In some aspects, an extension object model including the extension metadata associated with the object model is created in a namespace of the metadata repository associated with the client, a client-specific object model associated with the object model and including an association to the extension object model is created in the namespace of the metadata repository associated with the client, and, in response to the received request, the client-specific object model is identified in the namespace of the metadata repository associated with the client According to these aspects, identification of the extension metadata comprises identification of the extension object model in the namespace of the metadata repository associated with the client based on the association to the extension object model included in the client-specific object model

Metadata Management in the Taverna Workflow System

Abstract: There seems to be a general consensus on the crucial role metadata can play for enhancing the functionalities of scientific workflows systems, e.g., workflow and service discovery, composition and provenance browsing, among others. However, in most cases their management is under-specified, if not left unaddressed at all. A step in this direction, the main contribution of the work presented in this paper is an overview of metadata and their management in the Taverna workflow system. In Taverna, we consider metadata to be a first class citizen in the system, in the sense that we fully cover their life cycle from their creation, through their use and curation until their eventual removal. We present the main steps of this cycle and present the models used for metadata specification. In doing so, we distinguish two classes of metadata: metadata that describe workflow related entities, such as services, workflows and sub- workflows, and metadata that describe workflow executions, also known as workflow provenance.

Microsearch: An Interface for Semantic Search

Abstract: In this paper we discuss the potential for semantic search and focus on the most immediate problem toward its realization: the problem of the sparsity and relatively low quality of embedded metadata. We suggest that a part of the solution is to expose users to embedded metadata as part of their daily activity of searching the Web. We present the publicly available microsearch system which enriches search result presentation with metadata extracted from search results and report on some of the early feedback we have received.

Sensor Metadata Management and Its Application in Collaborative Environmental Research

Abstract: This paper considers metadata generation and tracking in a collaborative environment where users publish raw sensor data in the form of virtual sensors and post-process data by means of filtering, modeling, or query processing techniques. In the metadata system described, data from different sources with different provenance will be enriched with further metadata at each processing step to describe the processing implemented and/or observations which may explain anomalies in the data. The management of this data is the subject of this paper. In the context of sensor data processing, in particular in the environmental sciences, there is still a large gap between data acquisition and metadata gathering, further complicated by the problem of combining both. In this paper, an attempt is made to bridge the gap between data management and semantic annotation. This paper describes a user friendly, easily deployable system for gathering sensor metadata and capturing semantics behind higher level data processing steps. These semantics are particularly useful in understanding data processing workflows. Furthermore, different methods of querying, exporting and importing gathered data from and to higher level applications are examined.

Metadata and Semantics

Abstract: Metadata and Semantics is an edited volume based on the 2007 Conference on Metadata and Semantics Research (MTSR), now in its second meeting. Metadata research is a pluri-disciplinary field that encompasses all aspects of the definition, creation, assessment, management and use of metadata. This edited volume brings together world class leaders to contribute their research and up-to-date information on metadata and semantics applied to library management, e-commerce, e-business, information science and librarianship, to name a few. Metadata and Semantics is designed for a professional audience composed of researchers and practitioners in industry. This book is also suitable for advanced-level students in computer science, information systems and information science and librarianship.

System and method for synchronizing service metadata

Abstract: A system and method for synchronizing service metadata into a format for canonical representation of service metadata and publishing the synchronized service metadata into a metadata repository. The method comprises: receiving service metadata from a service producer; normalizing the service metadata into the format for canonical representation of service metadata; and publishing normalized service metadata into a metadata repository that supports the format for canonical representation of service metadata. The system comprises: at least one connector for each service producer, wherein the connector permits a synchronization system to communicate bi-directionally with the service producer; one normalizer for each service producer, wherein the normalizer transforms the service metadata into a format for the canonical representation of service metadata; and at least one provider for each service producer, wherein the provider publishes the canonical representation of service metadata into a metadata repository.

System and method for semantic asset search in a metadata repository

Abstract: Embodiments of the invention are generally related to semantic search and service metadata repositories, particularly with regards to methods and systems for performing a semantic asset search in a service metadata repository. One embodiment includes identifying service metadata assets with similar metadata, relationships, and categorizations to the service metadata assets with the most relevant keywords and identifying service metadata assets have been used in conjunction with the one or more selected service metadata assets.

Method and Apparatus for Deploying Applications

Abstract: A computer implemented method, apparatus, and computer usable program code for deploying packages. In response to a request to deploy a package for a software application containing metadata, a first portion of the metadata describing the package is processed. A second portion of the metadata relating to modification of a database is processed for the software application after processing the first portion of the metadata. A third portion of the metadata describing all other content for the software application is processed after processing the second portion of the metadata.

A Novel Dynamic Metadata Management Scheme for Large Distributed Storage Systems

Abstract: In large distributed storage systems, metadata is usually managed separately by a metadata server cluster. The partitioning of the metadata among the servers is of critical importance for maintaining efficient MDS operation and a desirable load distribution across the cluster. We present a dynamic directory partitioning (DDP) metadata management scheme, directory metadata and file metadata are managed in different ways, and the dynamically changing workload can be balanced by adjusting the metadata distribution on metadata servers. Our simulation results show that our approach, comparing with other metadata management strategies, has advantages in performance, scalability and adaptability.

Metadata-integrated debugger

Abstract: A method, system and computer program product for software debugging using annotation metadata. A set of metadata comprising source code annotation information for a software program is maintained, together with data/metadata relationships between individual units of the metadata and individual units of the source code. A software debugging point is set that is associated with debugging point metadata comprising one or more units the metadata. A debugging action is performed when execution of the software program reaches said debugging point.

Reuse of shared metadata across applications via URL protocol

Abstract: Techniques for facilitating the sharing of metadata. In one set of embodiments, a metadata document is referenced by a plurality of software applications as a URL, the URL comprising a protocol component identifying a specialized protocol name and a path component identifying a name and namespace of the metadata document. The specialized protocol name indicates that the metadata document is a shared document stored in a shared metadata repository. When an application in the plurality of software applications needs to access the metadata document, the URL is passed to a URL resolver configured to identify the shared metadata repository based on configuration information associated with the application. The metadata document is then retrieved from the shared metadata repository. Since many existing application framework components and standards are adapted to reference metadata documents as URLs, embodiments of the present invention facilitate metadata reuse with minimal or no code changes to the applications or their underlying framework.

Techniques for reducing down time in updating applications with metadata

Abstract: A method and apparatus for reducing down time in updating applications with metadata is provided. The application contains both code and metadata. A copy of the application is made. A software update is installed on the copy of the application. During installation, the original application continues to run and service users, who may modify the metadata of the original application. Periodically, the metadata of the copy of the application is updated to incorporate changes to the metadata of the original application. When the software update is completed, users are prevented from further modifying the metadata of the original application. The metadata of the copy of the application is updated to incorporate the final changes to the metadata of the original application. Users are redirected from the original application to the copy of the application.

Automated Digital Media Presentations

Abstract: Among other things, techniques and systems are disclosed for implementing an automated presentation of media content having associated metadata. The system provides an automated transition that corresponds to a relationship between a first media content item's metadata and metadata associated with a second media content item. The automated system also provides an automated information overlay that corresponds to a relationship between a first media content item's associated metadata and metadata associated with a second media content item. The automated system also can obtain information corresponding to metadata of the media content and provides automated information overlays while displaying the media content in a presentation.

Metadata for social recommendations: storing, sharing and reusing evaluations of learning resources

Abstract: abstract Social information retrieval systems, such as recommender systems, can benefit greatly from sharable and reusable evaluations of online resources. For example, in distributed repositories with rich collections of learning resources, users can benefit from evaluations, ratings, reviews, annotations, and so forth that previous users have provided. Furthermore, sharing such evaluation feedback can help attain the critical mass of data required for social information retrieval systems to be effective and efficient. This kind of interoperability requires a common framework that can be used to describe the evaluation approach and its results in a preusable manner. In this chapter we discuss this concept, focusing on the rationale for a reusable and interoperable framework, that can be used to facilitate the representation, management, and reuse of results from the evaluation of learning resources. For this purpose, we review a variety of evaluation approaches for learning resources and study ways in which evaluation results may be characterized, so as to draw requirements for sharable and reusable evaluation metadata. Usage scenarios illustrate how evaluation metadata can be useful in the context of recommender systems for learning resources.