FGDC Metadata & Other Documentation
Metadata is "data about data." Used in the context of digital spatial data, metadata is the background information that describes the content, quality, condition, and other appropriate characteristics of the data. Paper maps contain metadata, primarily as part of the map sources and legend. In this form, metadata is readily apparent and easily transferred between map producers and map users. When map data are in a digital form, metadata is equally as important, but its development and maintenance often require a more conscious effort on the part of data producers and the chain of subsequent users who may modify the data to suit their particular needs. Put simply, metadata preserves the usefulness of a data set.
Columbia County Land Information Department authors metadata according to the Federal Geographic Data Committee (FGDC) Standards for all custodial GIS data sets. The FGDC standard objective is to provide a common set of terminology and definitions for the documentation of digital geospatial data. The standard establishes the names of data elements and compound elements (groups of data elements) to be used for these purposes, the definitions of these compound elements and data elements, and information about the values that are to be provided for the data elements.
The Value of Metadata
For More Information
Columbia County Land Information Department Metadata
THE VALUE OF METADATA
from the Federal Geographic Data Committee
Two very similar paintings of circus performers by Picasso from 1904 are put on the auction block; one brings tens of millions of dollars, the other hundreds of thousands. What is the difference? In one case, the ownership of the painting can be traced through sales slips and auction house records back to the estate of Picasso's dealer. The other painting appeared suddenly on the art market. It looks almost identical, but lacking documentation, how can one be sure it's authentic?
Just as a work of art can change hands many times, so can geospatial data. Once created, data can travel almost instantaneously through a network and be used for any number of different kinds of spatial analysis. Thus transformed, these data can be retransmitted to another user. Change is the essence of geospatial data in a networked environment. The word metadata shares the same Greek root as the word metamorphosis. Meta means change and metadata, or "data about data" describe the origins of and track the changes to geospatial data.
Metadata can help the city planner, the graduate student in geography, or the forest manager find and use geospatial data, but they also benefit the primary creator of the data by maintaining the value of the data and assuring their continued use over a span of years.
What are metadata?
The concept of metadata is familiar to most people who deal with spatial issues. A map legend is pure metadata. The legend contains information about the publisher of the map, the publication date, the type of map, a description of the map, spatial references, the map's scale and its accuracy, among many other things. Metadata are simply that type of descriptive information applied to a digital geospatial file. They're a common set of terms and definitions to use when documenting geospatial data. Most digital geospatial files now have some associated metadata.
Why bother with metadata?
Metadata helps people who use geospatial data find the data they need and determine how best to use it. Metadata benefit the data producing organization as well. As personnel change in an organization, undocumented data may lose their value. Later workers may have little understanding of the contents and uses for a digital data base and may find they can't trust results generated from these data. Lack of knowledge about other organizations` data can lead to duplication of effort. It may seem burdensome to add the cost of generating metadata to the cost of data collection, but in the long run it's worth it.
How can metadata be produced?
The information needed to create metadata is often readily available when the data are collected. A small amount of time invested at the beginning of a project may save money in the future. Data producers and users cannot afford to be without documented data. The initial expense of documenting data clearly outweighs the potential costs of duplicated or redundant data generation. A recently developed metadata standard provides a systematic way to collect metadata.
Why use a standard?
When producing a map, the cartographer must organize all the descriptive information that goes into the map legend in a particular format. Titles are put in a specific place, tic marks are made a certain way, meters may be used instead of feet, and so forth. A metadata standard is simply a common set of terms and definitions that describe geospatial data.
What standard should be used?
The Federal Geographic Data Committee (FGDC) recently adopted a content standard for metadata. According to an Executive order signed by President Clinton on April 11, 1994, all Federal agencies will begin to use this standard to document newly created geospatial data as of January 1995. This standard provides a consistent approach and format for the description of data characteristics. The standard was developed over a two-year period, with extensive review by professionals at all levels of government. The standard provides a way for data users to know:
- what data are available
- whether the data meet their specific needs
- where to find the data
- how to access the data.
Because these standards are now in place, and large amounts of Federal data will be available in these standards, data managers from State and local governments and private industry will have an incentive to adopt these standards to document their own data. The FGDC is also sponsoring the creation of a National Geospatial Data Clearinghouse that will point users toward the spatial data that are best for their particular project. The intent is not to centralize all geographic data in one location, but to provide links through the Internet to distributed sites where data are produced or maintained. Managers who document their data using the metadata standards will provide these metadata to the National Geospatial Data Clearinghouse so that users can easily find data. Easier access to data will mean that a company's customers or an agency's cooperators could be increased.
Why use metadata?
Twenty-five years ago, humans landed on the Moon. Data from that era are still being used today, and it is reasonable to assume that today's geospatial data could still be used in the year 2020 and beyond to study climate change, ecosystems, and other natural processes. Metadata standards will increase the value of such data by facilitating data sharing through time and space.
The value of Picasso's painting did not depend solely on his having signed the work, a signature that could easily have been forged. Information about the painting, where it came from and where it had been, increased its value. So when a manager launches a new project, investing a small amount of time and resources at the beginning will pay dividends in the future.
Original webpage "The Value of Metadata" at: http://www.fgdc.gov/publications/documents/metadata/metabroc.html
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FOR MORE INFORMATION
If you would like to explore available training or seek information about the FGDC Metadata Standard or the National Geospatial Data Clearinghouse contact:
Federal Geographic Data Committee
FGDC Secretariat
c/o U.S. Geological Survey
590 National Center
Reston, Virginia 22092
Telephone: (703) 648-5514
email: fgdc@fgdc.gov
Wisconsin Land Information Clearinghouse (WISCLINC)
WISCLINC is a gateway to geospatial data and metadata, related land and reference information, and the Wisconsin agencies that produce or maintain these items. WISCLINC is also a registered node in the web of NSDI clearinghouses.
email: sco@facstaff.wisc.edu
If you would like to know more about Columbia County Land Information Department metadata contact:
Columbia County Land Information Department
Kristen Anderson, Land Information Director/Land Information Officer
400 DeWitt Street
Portage, WI 53901
Email
Phone: 608-742-9882
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COLUMBIA COUNTY LAND INFORMATION DEPARTMENT METATDATA
Columbia County Coordinate System
About Wisconsin Coordinate Systems
Natural Features
Cultural Features
Images, Other ....
For more information on Columbia County Land Information GIS Data: GIS Program Description, GIS Data Standards, GIS Data Availability. Information regarding the county’s pricing can be found on the Land Records E-Store on the Land Information Department page or by calling the Land Information Department at (608) 742-9616.
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