Providing effective access to information resources remains a critical role of the information professional in today's digital world. If anything, it has become an even greater challenge, as domains converge and the amount of information available continues to grow exponentially. This book provides a systematic overview of the ways in which information resources are being described so as to facilitate their access across a wide range of contexts. The focus is on metadata used in contemporary systems and environments: Who creates it? How is it created? What makes some better than others? How is it shared? Information Resource Description serves as a primer on the rewarding field of information organization. It integrates the rich traditions of established fields, such as librarianship and archival studies, with emerging ones, such as information architecture and the Semantic Web, to produce a commentary on the enduring value and relevance of indexing and description for those interested in providing quality information. This commentary is based on fundamental concepts represented by key standards such as Functional Requirements for Bibliographic Records (FRBR), Resource Description and Access (RDA), and the Resource Description Framework (RDF). This book is essential reading for LIS students taking information organization courses at undergraduate and postgraduate levels, information professionals wishing to specialize in the metadata field, and existing metadata specialists who wish to update their knowledge.
