In preparation for its much-anticipated BIBFRAME
cataloging pilot project, the Library of Congress has developed training
materials for staff involved in the pilot, and made the first of three modules
available online at http://www.loc.gov/catworkshop/bibframe/.
Module one is divided into two sets of slides, plus supplementary
reading/viewing assignments and brief quizzes. The training materials are
designed for experienced catalogers and do not assume prior knowledge of linked
data concepts.
The first set of slides provides a brief introduction
to the concepts behind the Sematic Web and linked data, and the evolution of
the World Wide Web from a web of documents to a web of data. It explains the
need to move bibliographic data out of its MARC silo and onto the Semantic Web.
The second set of slides delves into the principles
underlying RDF (Resource Description Framework), the “language of the Web.”
Detailed, clearly presented examples of RDF triples provide a concrete
visualization of what bibliographic data structured in RDF looks like.
Although I found a number of typos in the slides (I AM
a cataloger, after all!), I found the training materials very helpful in
confirming and deepening my knowledge of linked data and the Semantic Web.
