An Emergent Theory of Digital Library Metadata

An Emergent Theory of Digital Library Metadata is a reaction to the current digital library landscape that is being challenged with growing online collections and changing user expectations. The theory provides the conceptual underpinnings for a new approach which moves away from expert defined standardised metadata to a user driven approach with users as metadata co-creators.ÿMoving away from definitive, authoritative, metadata to a system that reflects the diversity of users' terminologies, it changes the current focus on metadata simplicity and efficiency to one of metadata enriching, which is a continuous and evolving process of data linking.ÿFrom predefined description to information conceptualised, contextualised and filtered at the point of delivery.ÿBy presenting this shift, this book provides a coherent structure in which future technological developments can be considered. - Metadata is valuable when continuously enriched by experts and users - Metadata enriching results from ubiquitous linkin - Metadata is a resource that should be linked openly - The power of metadata is unlocked when enriched metadata is filtered for users individually

Dr Getaneh Alemu is an Information Professional and Researcher who is currently working as a Cataloguing and Metadata Librarian at Southampton Solent University, United Kingdom. He has worked and studied in higher education for more than 15 years in Ethiopia, Belgium, Norway, Estonia and the United Kingdom. He worked as a lecturer and Head University Librarian in Mekelle University, Ethiopia. He also worked as a research assistant on a digital preservation project at the University of Portsmouth. Getaneh's research focus includes Metadata, Digital Libraries, Open Access, Linked Data and Web 2.0 technologies.