什麼是 Metadata

Evergreen Note

Question :: 這篇文章的目的及動機?

Answer :: Metadata 在電腦科學裡, 應用的範圍相當廣泛, 例如: 文件、圖檔、影像檔、網站、數據分析、數位資產管理、物聯網等等. 想要理解 Metadata 的概念為何.

Summary

Metadata (元數據) 為描述檔案的擴展資料, 提供檔案的相關資訊. 以我個人管理筆記的狀況來理解, Metadata 用以記錄筆記檔案的資訊, 但無關筆記的內容, 例如: 建立日期、分類、類型、狀態等等, 都是在描述筆記檔案的資訊.

Metadata 的紀錄可以讓我了解筆記當時的狀態, 類型, 或跟其他筆記的關聯等等. 筆記關連圖

Note

Metadata is defined as the information that describes and explains data. It provides context with details such as the source, type, owner, and relationships to other data sets. So, it can help you understand the relevance of a particular data set and guide you on how to use it. In a nutshell: Metadata is a cornerstone of a modern enterprise data stack.

As Ashish Thusoo and Joydeep Sen Sarma put it in their book titled Creating a Data-Driven Enterprise with DataOps, metadata is data about data.

Here’s how the University Libraries from the University of North Carolina lend more context to the definition of metadata:

Metadata describes a data set (by providing answers to questions such as):

  • How it was collected?
  • When was it collected?
  • What assumptions were made in the data collection methodology?
  • What is the geographic scope?
  • Are there multiple files? If yes, how do they relate to one another?
  • What are the definitions of individual variables and, if applicable, what were the possible answers?
  • What was the calibration of any equipment used in data collection? And the version of software used for analysis?
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