MODS and RDF Call: 2018-08-06

Owned by Emily Porter
Last updated: Aug 17, 2018 by Eben English
2 min read

Time: 9 AM PDT / Noon EDT

Call-In Info:  712-775-7035 (Access Code: 960009)

Documents/Homework:

Moderator: Eben English

Notetaker: Danny Pucci (Etherpad: https://etherpad.wikimedia.org/p/MODS_and_RDF_Call__2018-08-06)

Attendees:

  • Eben English (BPL)
  • Simon O'Riordan (Emory)
  • Melanie Wacker (Columbia/MODS EC)
  • Danny Pucci (BPL)
  • Kate Gerrity (Amherst College)

Agenda (with notes)

  1. Feedback Form Responses (no new entries as of 8/1)
    1. https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1DRAzr3ExEAjK2RUs63gxcymoDwprQjVRPDsU_3dDGVU/edit?usp=sharing

  2. Email Responses (no new entries as of 8/1)
    1. https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/146uvvKt5ZVvWjm9WV28fWHgCP8fYQ_JXkc5GcMv98Wc/edit?usp=sharing

  3. New Comments on Recommendations document
    1. General comments
      1. Comment regarding MODS to BIBFRAME conversion: Group agrees we should ADD a footnote to the paragraph above in "background and need." Eben has done this.
      2. MODS reliance on "blank nodes" was changed to "blank nodes and minted objects."
      3. Concerns about number of namespaces utilized concern is that the namespaces may not be maintained. With so much variability, if things are not maintained, who updates these mapping recommendations? May be worth adding a paragraph in the intro that addresses the tradeoff of many vocabularies could potentially lead to future fragility. For now, Eben will respond to comment that we may add a caveat to the intro.
      4. We should add a note in the general comments about institutions needing to maintain their own application profiles for when these recommendations offer multiple options for how to deal with an element.
    2. Simple Mapping
      1. mods:title 
        1. language tags;
          1. 2 letter codes vs. 3 letter codes? Most of our data uses 3 letter codes, so it is impractical to think we will all change them. But, this is the 2nd time it's been brought up, so we will need to look into this further. This will be an agenda item for next time.
        2. question regarding nameTitleGroup attribute mapping (not in our examples)
          1. Eben is responding that we don't support every MODS attribute and that is one that's lost.
        3. Uniform title example was structurally incorrect and has been edited. Now no longer includes string literal for uniform title.
      2. mods:name
        1. comment that relators requires a URI (we confirmed with LC that it can accept literals)
          1. Eben fixed table and resolved comment.
        2. comments about use of contributor instead of creator in cases of a name entry with an unspecified role
          1. we all agree, switch to dce: contributor. Comment resolved.
      3. mods:genre
        1. Comment suggesting we have a typo in the syntax for one example
          1. Yes, true. Fixed and resolved.
      4. mods:originInfo
        1. comments regarding datatypes, EDTF usage
          1. This goes on the to-do list. XSD data types? Also, look into EDTF updates that change formats/values used in our examples.
          2. EDTF will remove English-language values (e.g., "open") in favor of symbols, so that this can be used more easily internationally. But this has not been released yet.
        2. request for dateOther mapping/examples
          1. responded that dateOther attributes are not supported and resolved the comment
  4. BIBO predicates
    1. Status of project: confirm group email discussions
    2. Eben's research indicates that the vocabulary WILL be maintained (DCMI will be hosting). We think, for now, leave as is. May revisit later, if necessary.
    3. Replacements for:
      1. bibo:issue; bibo:edition; bibo:volume
      2. bibo:presentedAt: discuss alternatives needed for complex/minted option based on group email discussion (requires a URI)

  5. Proposal for Samvera Connect session
    1. Eben submitted a proposal but hasn't heard anything in response.

  6. Next meeting:
    1. August 20, 2018

Action Items

  • Add a note in the general comments about institutions needing to maintain their own application profiles for when these recommendations offer multiple options for how to deal with an element.
  • Further investigation of 2-letter vs. 3-letter language tags
  • Data type tags for EDTF date strings?