Descriptive and thematic representation of electronic information of the Embrapa information agency: uses of the Dublin core metadata standard

Abstract

This article aims to share the experience of Embrapa’s usage of the Dublin Core (DC) metadata standard in the descriptive and thematic representation of electronic information resources. It presents a summarized description of each metadata element, as well as its definition, qualifiers, and value. The adoption of the Dublin Core has originated from research projects dedicated to the organization and treatment of electronic information produced by Embrapa, in which its main product is the website “Agência de Informação Embrapa” (Embrapa Information Agency). Two software tools have been developed to provide support for the descriptive and thematic representation activities. One of the tools is dedicated to the routine of insertion, alteration, exclusion and searching of data in the database. Minimum rules of descriptive representation, based on AACR2, have been adopted for the treatment of information. The second tool supports the activities related to the control of authorities, keywords and subject categories. When using the Dublin Core, the descriptive representation and thematic resources contribute to the increase and precision of information, furthermore it decreases the ambiguities and inconsistencies—critical factors of quality in the retrieval and access of the desired content.