Metadata Object Description Schema List

Saašha Metsärantala | 3 Apr 2012 15:33

Introducing the coverInfo element

Hello!

I would like to suggest the creation of a new MODS element, which could
contain (or have an attribute containing) a URI pointing to a (scanned or
born-digital) image of the front cover of books (or other items) described
in MODS elements. Even other attributes could be really useful.

A possible design could be something similar to:

coverInfo imageURI="http://example.org/id54321.jpg"
imageLicenseURI="http://www.gnu.org/licenses/fdl.txt" colorGrid="fff fff fff
fff f00 fff 0f0 0f0 0f0"

if we choose to use an empty element with all information in attributes.

 <at> imageURI contains the URI of the cover image.

 <at> imageLicenseURI contains the URI of the license applying to the cover
image. Such information could also be included using RDF.

 <at> colorGrid contains a space separated list of the nine hexadecimal encoded
average colors of each of the nine parts of the 3x3 grid covering the (book)
cover. In the example above, the top of the cover is white, the bottom of
the cover is green whereas the middle part of the cover is red with white
fields both on the left side and the right side. Putting such information in
MODS records would highly facilitate and speed up cover-color based
retrieval of items, without the need for an extra HTTP request to retrieve
the whole image and the following rework of the image information to make
the cover colors searchable. Standardizing such a functionality would
improve portability.

(Continue reading)

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Ray Denenberg, Library of Congress | 5 Apr 2012 00:51

Re: Introducing the coverInfo element

It sounds like a related item to me. You're describing an image, that image is a resource which can be
described by a MODS record, represented as a relatedItem, related to the original resource. The image
license would be represented via accessCondition within the related item.

--Ray

> -----Original Message-----
> From: Metadata Object Description Schema List [mailto:MODS@...]
> On Behalf Of Saašha Metsärantala
> Sent: Tuesday, April 03, 2012 9:34 AM
> To: MODS@...
> Subject: [MODS] Introducing the coverInfo element
> 
> Hello!
> 
> I would like to suggest the creation of a new MODS element, which could
> contain (or have an attribute containing) a URI pointing to a (scanned or
> born-digital) image of the front cover of books (or other items) described in
> MODS elements. Even other attributes could be really useful.
> 
> A possible design could be something similar to:
> 
> coverInfo imageURI="http://example.org/id54321.jpg"
> imageLicenseURI="http://www.gnu.org/licenses/fdl.txt" colorGrid="fff fff fff
> fff f00 fff 0f0 0f0 0f0"
> 
> if we choose to use an empty element with all information in attributes.
> 
>  <at> imageURI contains the URI of the cover image.
>

(Continue reading)

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Ray Denenberg, Library of Congress | 23 Apr 2012 17:50

Re: Introducing the coverInfo element

I am responding on behalf of the MODS Editorial Committee to the coverInfo proposal of April 3,

http://listserv.loc.gov/cgi-bin/wa?A2=ind1204&L=MODS&P=R371&I=-3&X=4D1CAC325D8564F70C&Y

Proposed Feature

A MODS element containing (or pointing to) an image of the front cover of the resource (e.g. a book) described by the MODS record.

And in addition:

- the license applying to the cover, and

- the color grid for the image

For example:

<coverInfo imageURI="http://example.org/id54321.jpg"

imageLicenseURI="http://www.gnu.org/licenses/fdl.txt" colorGrid="fff fff fff fff f00 fff 0f0 0f0 0f0"/>

or:

<imageURI>http://example.org/id54321.jpg</imageURI>

<imageLicenseURI>http://www.gnu.org/licenses/fdl.txt</imageLicenseURI>

</coverInfo>

Where imageURI is a URI to the cover image, imageLicenseURI is a URI to the license applying to the cover image, and colorGrid is a space separated list of the nine hexadecimal encoded average colors of each of the nine parts of the 3x3 grid covering the cover. (In this example, the top of the cover is white, the bottom is green, and the middle is red with white fields both on the left side and the right side.)

Proposed Solution

The MODS EC sees the cover image as a separate but related resource. As such, it may be described by a MODS record, represented as a relatedItem. The image license could be represented via accessCondition within the related item.

Currently there is no appropriate 'type' value for the cover image, within the enumerated list of values for the relatedItem 'type' attribute. The MODS EC does not suggest adding a new value; instead, a new attribute, 'otherType', may be defined for relatedItem. For a relatedItem describing a cover image the 'type' attribute would be omitted (it is optional) and a value of 'otherType' supplied. That value would not be included in the schema but could be recommended in the guidelines. It could be,for example, 'coverImage'.

The "otherType" attribute approach matches a practice used in MADS, METS, and EAD.

The MODS EC feels that the color grid is out of scope for a general-use bibliographic element set.

--Ray