I have heard the term meta data being thrown around regularly since entering grad school. I knew that I should know this term but to be honest I had no idea exactly what meta data meant, prior to this week's reading. I understood it's relevance but I had no real grasp on the term. Finally it has come to light what the term meta data really means and how it applies to me as a soon-to-be information professional.
Anne J. Gilliland in her chapter "Setting the Stage" presented a clear, concise, well-rounded description of meta data. She starts by clarifying that the term means different things to different people depending on the professional context and user. She goes on to define meta data as "the sum total of what one can say about any information object." She then explains that an information object "is anything that can be addressed and manipulated as a discrete entity by a human being or an information system." Finally a definition that summed up the term in an understandable way. Simply put it is how something is described. As the chapter progresses she introduced the many types, functions and uses for meta data, specifically in libraries, museums and archives; all this adds to the deeper understanding of the term. Personally, coming from a museum background, it helped to embed the term within a familiar environment.
I found particular interest in the questions/issues she raises at the end of the chapter and I believe it illustrates just how important it is to have a system in place that will insure the reliability of information accessibility.
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