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Metadata in Content Management

• Kaleigh Blessard
• August 31, 2011
• 02:20 pm

Originally posted by Troy Allen on CMSWire on January 10, 2011. 

Abstract: This article illustrates the importance of Metadata in Universal Content Management applications. 

One of the biggest hurdles in implementing an effective Content Management application is to establish a usable Metadata Model. Having a repository of data that users cannot search and access information from is no better than storing data on a simple file system. Let’s look at some common models, in particular Dublin Core. Content Management, no matter what type of content, requires a strong Metadata model and Security model to ensure correct management of objects and true usability.

The Importance of Metadata in Content Management

To put it simply, Metadata is a set of fields and values used to describe and categorize content and managed objects. As a general rule, Metadata is key to these functions:

• Search – Users will often want to search for key data associated with a file such as an Author, Date Published, Key Words, Topic and so on.
• Distribution – Values associated with content are often used by applications to determine when and where content will be distributed or shared too.
• Access – Security applied to managed objects are often part of the overall metadata model. Applications that filter the metadata model during distribution are actually applying a light level of security in terms of delivering targeted content based upon business rules matching metadata values.
• Retention – Most Records Management applications rely upon content metadata when performing retention rules.

Metadata Standards

When evaluating taxonomies and metadata models, organizations should first look to see if there are any standards that external parties require them to use when sharing data. For example, organizations dealing with the US Department of Justice, US Environmental Protection Agency, US Health Information Knowledgebase or the US National Cancer Institute will more than likely need to adopt the ISO/IEC 11179 standard. There are standards available, and sometimes required, in almost every kind of industry. The following are a few of the most common standards:

—-End of Part 1, please continue to  Metadata in Content Managment Part 2

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