Metadata Resources
Why Create Metadata?
Metadata Guidelines
- The Minnesota Geographic Metadata Guidelines (MGMG): These state guidelines for documenting GIS data are a streamlined, but compatible, version of the federal metadata standard.
- Federal Content Standard for Digital Geospatial Metadata: Some projects may require you to use the full federal standard -- the Federal Geographic Data Committee provides help.
Software
- Minnesota Metadata Editor (MME): A free standalone tool customized for the Minnesota Geographic Metadata Guidelines
Help Me Fill in the Fields!
- Top 10 Ways to Create Metadata That's Just Ducky (2 pages, 359K, PDF)
- Minnesota geographic coordinates: Latitude and longitude bounding box coordinates for counties and other areas in Minnesota
- Topic categories: Used on the Minnesota Geospatial Commons, based on the international ISO 19115 standard
- Positional accuracy handbook: Help with horizontal positional accuracy
- Institutionalize Metadata Before It Institutionalizes You!: Integrate metadata production into your geospatial data development process
Creating Metadata for the Minnesota Geospatial Commons
Also see "Software" section above
- Metadata guidelines for the Commons
- Become a publisher on the Commons
- The Next Generation of Metadata in Minnesota: Curating Content for the Geospatial Commons (click on balloon icons in upper left of each slide to see the speaker notes)
Shows how metadata makes the Commons possible and covers pros and cons of MME and ArcCatalog metadata entry tools. MN GIS/LIS conference presentation, 10/9/2015.
Metadata Workshop Training Materials
- Minnesota materials: MnGeo's "Don't Duck Metadata" workshop slideshow (58 slides, 2.2 MB, PPTX). Topics: What's metadata and what's its value; a walk through the Minnesota guidelines; MME metadata entry tool; how to make metadata easier. Updated 5/14
- Federal materials: Educational materials tailored to the federal metadata content standard