At 02:52 PM 4/24/97 -0400, Rebecca S. Guenther wrote:
[On the subject of values for the "type" element]
>we may need a short general list that we can all
>agree upon and then use extensions (in this case scheme=whatever) for the
>more comprehensive list that particular applications use.
I agree. I think a list of 10-15 recommended values will do a lot of good.
Not to pick on Jon and Martin, but is it really important to distinguish
between email to a moderated list and a posting to an unmoderated USENET
newsgroup? What if there is a gateway between a list and a newsgroup?
I think that is a bit too detailed.
>A possible pared down list of standard resource types:
>Text ("book" or "journal" deals more with publication pattern
>than resource type; both are text)
A few quibbles with Rebecca's suggestions about texts.
I have two problems with the term "text". First, for me as well
as a lot of other computer weenies, it implies format rather than genre.
"text" vs. "postscript" for example. Second, "text" is the term used by
deconstructionists for the object of their efforts. Leaving aside my
allergic reaction to deconstruction, "text" to such people does not
distinguish it from a poem, map, movie, or anything else they may wish
to examine. How about "document" to denote a work that is principally
textual but may include images, tables, etc?
>Music
Music is one genre that can be captured as an audio recording. Do
we want "lecture" or "speech" as one of the other major genres?
Also, do we want to lump "recordings" and "scores" into the same
genre?
>Email message
Seems to be a form of text.
>Online service
What sort of resource is that?
>Home Page
Seems to be a form of text.
Here is my first cut at a set of terms and definitions for resource types.
1) Document - A work that is mostly textual in nature, but may include
images, maps, tables, or inclusion in other formats.
We do not presently distinguish between fiction and non-fiction
works, short or long works, etc. due to the difficulty of making
these decisions in particular cases. (Is "Communion" - the
book about extraterrestrials - fact or fiction? I'd call it
a novel but the author doesn't).
(Types 2-8 are specialized forms of document. Since the Dublin Core
was initially intended to describe document-like objects, this seems
OK to me.)
2) Thesis - A scholarly document prepared to meet the graduation
requirements of an academic program. Usually boring.
3) Advertisement - A document usually prepared with the purpose of
increasing the sales of a product or service. May also
be prepared to encourage different behaviors for
non-commercial purposes, such as "Keep Britain Tidy"
or "Don't Mess with Texas".
4) Dictionary - A document consisting of an organized list of terms and
their definitions.
5) Manual - A document giving instructions for the operation or
maintenance of a device or system.
6) Home Page - An online document serving as the entry point to a
description of a person, organization, or project.
Typically changed many times.
7) Transcript - A document providing a textual representation of a
non-textual performance, such as a speech.
8) Message - A document primarily intended as a piece of correspondence
between an originating party and a restricted audience. "Open
letters" to email lists or postings to USENET news groups
also fall into this category.
9) Image - A photograph, drawing, or other two-dimensional representation
of a physical or conceptual entity. (Yeah yeah, I know this
definition is woolly).
10) Map - An image intended to display the spatial relationships of
physical entities, or the conceptual relations between non-physical
entities. (or do we want to restrict this to spatial maps?)
11) Dataset - Alphanumeric data not properly described by any of the other
resource types.
12) Recording - An audio recording of a musical performance, a vocal
utterance such as a speech, etc.
13) Musical Score - The instructions for the performance of a musical
composition. Frequently given in musical notation
and intended for human use, but may also be in a
machine-processible notation such as MIDI.
14) Video/moving image - A sequence of images intended to be displayed at
suffucient speed to give the illusion of motion.
15) Software - Source code or executable code for controlling the operation
of a computing device.
Before I finished this message, Jon Knight posted another reply to Rebecca
in which he asked:
>Why do the phrases "short general list" and "that we can all agree upon"
>worry me? :-) :-) :-)
"Because he can learn from experience" was my instant mental reply.
"Unlike me" was the unwelcome corollary to that thought. :-/
Regards,
Ron Daniel Jr. voice:+1 505 665 0597
Advanced Computing Lab fax:+1 505 665 4939
MS B287 email:[log in to unmask]
Los Alamos National Lab http://www.acl.lanl.gov/~rdaniel
Los Alamos, NM, USA, 87545
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