Metadata provides a means of indexing, accessing, preserving, and discovering digital resources. The volume of digital information available over electronic networks has created a pressing need for standards that assist in locating, retrieving, and managing this vast and complex universe.

This revised edition of Introduction to Metadata, first published in 1998 and updated in an online version in 2000, provides an overview of metadata—its types, roles, and characteristics; a discussion of metadata as it relates to Web resources; a description of methods, tools, standards, and protocols for publishing and disseminating digital collections; and a handy glossary. Newly added to this edition are an essay on the importance of standards-based rights metadata for cultural institutions; and a section entitled “Practical Principles for Metadata Creation and Maintenance.”