Metadata requirements

From ICA-AtoM
Revision as of 16:52, 25 January 2008 by Richard (talk | contribs)
Jump to navigation Jump to search

Please note that ICA-AtoM is no longer actively supported by Artefactual Systems.
Visit https://www.accesstomemory.org for information about AtoM, the currently supported version.

Main page > System Requirements > Metadata requirements


Metadata requirements identify the entities the system must track and the kinds of information about them it must capture in order to do the things specified by the functional requirements.


Metadata requirements are organized around the three core entities the system must track:


Each metadata requirement includes the following information:

  • Requirement number
  • Requirement name
  • Requirement specification
  • Requirement quotation
  • Associated functional requirements
  • Associated quality requirements
  • Associated technical requirements
  • ICA-AtoM implementation
  • Known issues
  • User manual sections


Describe units of archival materials

Requirement number MR-1
Requirement name Describe units of archival materials
Requirement specification The system must:
  • Include an entity representing an archival description.
Sub-requirements

---

Identify unit / object of description

Requirement number MR-1.1
Requirement name Identify unit / object of description
Requirement specification The system must:
  • Uniquely identify each description.
Sub-requirements

---

Assign unique identifiers to descriptions

Requirement number MR-1.1.1
Requirement name Assign unique identifiers to descriptions.
Requirement specification The system must:
  • Assign one or more unique identifier (codes) to each description such that the description can be linked to the object of description.
Requirement quotation
Associated functional requirements
  • FR-3.B, Assign unique identifiers to descriptions.
Associated quality requirements
  • Auto-enter values.
Associated technical requirements
ICA-AtoM fields
  • information_object::id
  • information_object:identifier
ICA-AtoM implementation
  • ICA-AtoM automatically assigns each record a unqiue database ID (id); this value is invisible to users.
  • Users enter their own Reference code (identifier). ICA-AtoM allows any type of value in this field (numbers, text, alpha-numeric code) to accommodate any institutional system for assigning identifiers.
Known issues
  • Cannot currently auto-generate next sequential reference code / number.
User Manual sections

---

Name unit / object of description

Requirement number MR-1.1.2
Requirement name Name unit / object of description
Requirement specification The system must:
  • Assign titles to archival descriptions.
  • Accommodate multiple titles (variants, title changes).
  • Support explanatory notes on titles.
Requirement quotation
Associated functional requirements
  • FR-3.2, Assign unique identifiers to descriptions.
  • FR-4.1, Support description of the intellectual and physical characteristics of archival materials.
Associated quality requirements
Associated technical requirements
ICA-AtoM fields
  • information_object::title
  • information_object::alternate_title
  • note::note_content
  • note::note_type
ICA-AtoM implementation
  • ICA-AtoM includes fields for Title (title) and Alternate title (alternate_title).
  • ICA-AtoM does not impose any rules on formatting titles.
  • Users can add as many Title notes as required (stored in a separate *note database table).
Known issues
  • Need to allow multiple alternate titles (currently only allows 1 alternate).
  • Need to allow assignment of date ranges to titles for previous names of descriptive unit.
User Manual sections

---

Identify the level of description

Requirement number MR-1.1.3
Requirement name Identify the level of description.
Requirement specification The system must:
  • Identify the level in the hierarchy of arrangement and description to which to the current description applies.
  • Link the current description to related description within the same hierarchy.
Requirement quotation
  • [[ISAD(G)#ISAD3.1.4 | ISAD(G) 3.1.4
Associated functional requirements
  • FR-1.1, Support multi-level description.
  • FR-4.4, Ensure that infromation at higher and lower levels of description are consistent.
Associated quality requirements
  • Provide drop-down value list menus.
  • Provide context-specific pick lists.
Associated technical requirements
ICA-AtoM fields
ICA-AtoM implementation
  • ICA-AtoM includes the Level of description field with a drop-down list for selecting values. Value list can be customized by the system administrator to include only levels employed by the institution. The value themselves reside in a separate database table (term).
  • ICA-AtoM links the current description with others in the hierarchy of arrangement through the Next upper level of description field in which the user selects the "parent" description; leave field blank if the description represents the highest level.
Known issues
  • Need to be able to filter drop-down list in Next upper level of description so that it is more manageable.
User Manual sections

---

Indicate the dates of the material described

Requirement number 1.1.4
Requirement name Indicate the dates of the material described.
Requirement specification The system must:
  • Indicate the earliest and latest dates of the material described.
  • Support multiple date types (date of creation vs date of accumulation).
Requirement quotation
Associated functional requirements
  • FR-4.1, Support the description of the intellectual and physical characteristics of archival material.
  • FR-4.4, Ensure that information at the higher and lower levels are consistent.
Associated quality requirements
  • Support multiple date formats.
  • Calculate values at higher levels from data entered at lower levels.
Associated technical requirements
ICA-AtoM fields
ICA-AtoM implementation
  • ICA-AtoM handles mutliple dates through the event table, linking a description to a creator over a specifc date range.
  • Users register dates through the Creation context fields in the ContextArea and can enter as many dates as required.
  • Users enter separate data for Creation year and End year; these are number fields used behind the scenes for searching and sorting.
  • Users also enter the date range as a single text string in the Date display field; here they can records dates in any format and apply any terms or typographic conventions to the qualify the dates (e.g. "March 1975"; "ca 1967-1968"; "[ 198?]"; "predominant dates: 1980-1995").
Known issues
  • Date display should automatically default to the the Creation year and the End year so that the user need only modify this field if either of these dates requires qualification.
  • ICA-AtoM does not enable higher levels to "calculate up" date ranges from lower levels (e.g. set dates at fonds level from related lower-level descriptions); nor does it enforce consistency between levels.
User Manual sections

---

Indicate the extent of the material described

Requirement number MR-1.1.5
Requirement name Indicate the extent of the material described.
Requirement specification The system must:
  • Identify the logical or physical extent of the object.
  • Describe the medium of the object.
Requirement quotation
Associated functional requirements
  • FR-4.1 Support the description of the intellectual and physical characteristics of archival material.
  • FR-4.4, Ensure that information at the higher and lower levels are consistent.
Associated quality requirements
  • Provide controlled vocabulary for media terms.
Associated technical requirements
ICA-AtoM fields
  • information_object::extent_and_medium
ICA-AtoM implementation
  • ICA-AtoM provides a text field for Extent and medium.
Known issues
  • No support for drop-down lists for media types.
  • ICA-AtoM does not enable higher levels to "calculate up" extents from lower levels (e.g. set dates at fonds level from related lower-level descriptions); nor does it enforce consistency between levels.
User Manual sections

---

Describe context of archival materials

Requirement number MR-1.2
Requirement name Describe context of archival materials.
Requirement specification The system must:
  • Indicate the origins and custody of the archival materials being described.
Sub-requirements

---

Identify creator(s) of archival materials

Requirement number MR-1.2.1
Requirement name Identify creator(s) of archival materials.
Requirement specification The system must:
  • Record the name of the the entity or entities responsible for the creation, accumulation, and maintenance of the material being described.
  • Accommodate multiple creators (e.g. in a series system approach linking a single series to different agencies at different times).
Requirement quotation
Associated functional requirements
  • FR-4.2, Support the description of the context of archival materials.
Associated quality requirements
  • Provide controlled vocabulary drop-down lists (names).
Associated technical requirements
ICA-AtoM fields
  • event::actor_id.
ICA-AtoM implementation
  • ICA-AtoM links creators to archival materials via the event table which registers the creation of archival material as "event" that occurs over a certain date range.
  • Users select / enter a name in the Creator field.
  • Users enter the outside years in the Creation year and End year fields; these are number field used behind the scenes for sorting and searching.
  • Users also enter the date range as a single text string in the Date display field; here they can apply any terms or typographic conventions to the qualify the dates (e.g. "ca 1967-1968", "[ 198?]", "predominant dates: 1980-1995").

Users can registers as many creator events as required.

  • ICA-AtoM provides a drop-down list in the Creator field, showing names generated from the actor authority file.
  • If the required name does not appear in the list, users can directly enter the name and ICA-AtoM registers it in the actor authority file.
Known issues
  • The drop-down list of names shows only the authorized headings and does not include variants (e.g. shows "Dr. Koenraad Kuiper" but not "Kuiper, Koenraad").
User Manual sections

---


---

Template

Requirement number Number
Requirement name
Requirement specification The system must:
  • Requirement.
Requirement quotation
Associated functional requirements
Associated quality requirements


Associated technical requirements


ICA-AtoM fields


ICA-AtoM implementation


Known issues


User Manual sections


---

Retrieved from "https://wiki.ica-atom.org/index.php?title=Metadata_requirements&oldid=1886"