Intro to Implementing Metadata Standards:
During this module, participants will learn about:
- What kind of metadata does EaaSI (the program of work) gather?
- What metadata has been directly incorporated into the EaaSI platform?
- Which standards are influencing EaaSI system design?
- How does EaaSI share/contribute its metadata to the field?
Questions for Discussion/Reflection
- Do you or your organization use a digital catalog, repository, or access system? If so – what metadata standards are implemented in that system?
- This module discusses Wikidata as a linked, open source of data for software history and digital preservation. Are there other public sites or databases you’re aware of that could be of use when trying to emulate legacy software?
- On slides 11-13, we give a number of examples of metadata fields/properties that are currently gathered by EaaSI’s student configuration team. Look at each row and consider: is this property useful for people (improving search and discovery, user-facing workflows or interfaces) machines (improving automation, integration between systems), or both?
About EaaSI
The EaaSI program builds on previous work to apply the Emulation-as-a-Service (EaaS) framework for access and use of preserved software and digital objects. The project is focused on scaling the technological framework necessary for multiple institutions to configure, share, and access software and configured environments. EaaSI is focused on a distributed, community-driven architecture that sits on top of existing digital preservation infrastructure. This directly complements existing efforts by the Software Preservation Network and others to address key aspects of software preservation including legal advocacy, research about local software preservation needs, institutional capacity building for software preservation, collection development, professional development and training, and workflow recommendations.
About the EaaSI Training Module Series
Phase 2 of the EaaSI program of work (July 2020 – December 2022) will include a series of Training Modules, with one new Module to be released approximately every three months (a total of eight by the conclusion of Phase 2). These Training Modules are intended to supplement and expand on concepts alluded to in the EaaSI User Handbook, opening the design and functionality of the platform to wider feedback, comment, and discussion. Though particular features and elements of interface design may change between releases of the EaaSI platform, these Modules should remain consistent in elaborating on our infrastructure.
Each Module contains: a slideshow presenting a core piece of Emulation-as-a-Service functionality and its relationship to EaaSI goals and use cases; a set of questions for practitioners to discuss and/or reflect; and recommended resources from the EaaSI team for further exploration of the topic. Modules are intended to stand on their own but be easily adaptable to an in-person or virtual workshop session.
Supplementary materials:
- Software Metadata Recommend Format (SMRF) Guide
- EaaSI Metadata Mappings V1 – an expanded/full version of the mappings sampled in this module (feedback welcome!)
- The Game Metadata and Citation Project (GAMECIP)
- The CodeMeta Project
- “Wikidata as a digital preservation knowledgebase“, Kat Thornton and Euan Cochrane, (OPF Blog)