2.

Create Geographic Metadata and review

ArcCatalog Metadata Application
Creating Metadata in ArcCatalog
Open ArcCatalog (Start -> All Programs -> ArcGIS -> ArcCatalog). Check that the Stylesheets
set to FGDC Classic.
Check if there is any descriptive metadata supplied with the data files that is not appearing in the
metadata in ArcCatalog. Examples: 'read me' files; .txt or .html files with a similar name to the
data file; 'data dictionary' folder or file, etc.

Navigate to the file you want to work on. If you do not see the directory in the Table of
Contents in ArcCatalog, use the 'connect to folder' button to set up the directory path
to the file. Click on the icon with the pencil on the Metadata toolbar to edit
the metadata .
The Preview tab allows you to see the spatial layout of the data or the attribute table by
using a selection menu at the bottom of the window. You can delete attributes that appear to be
useless. Note that you cannot reliably judge this from one screen of data, except for very small
datasets (<15 records). Try sorting the data by right-clicking on the column name to see if the
attribute changes for some records.

In the Editing Dialog Box: The main categories (example = Identification, Data Quality, etc)
are listed at the top. All subcategories appear in the tabs below. Each main category has a
different set of subcategory tabs. Categories and subcategories follow from left to right in the
same order that you would read them from top to bottom in the metadata when the stylesheet is
set to FGDC classic. Certain things are filled in automatically by ArcCatalog, so you don't need
to think about them (things like the geographic coordinates of the file and the names of all the
attributes (column names) in the attribute table). The instructions below do not address every
single category and subcategory in the metadata because we usually do not get any information
provided by data suppliers for all categories.




A. Identification - General Tab
If an abstract, purpose, and/or supplemental information are provided with the dataset or
were provided verbally then fill in these areas. Many datasets do not provide this
information, in which case, we leave these areas blank. Delete any red "REQUIRED" text
from fields where no information is supplied.

B. Identification - General tab - Use Constraints
The use constraints define how the data may be utilized by a user, e.g. copyright
restrictions, licensing, etc. Copy and paste the information provided with the data files. If
there are additional constraints already in the field, add the information provided to it. A
larger text box can be opened by double-clicking on the text area.
C. Identification - Contact tab - Details
This will be for the person who is most familiar with the data layer. If this was already
filled in by the data provider then leave it as is. If this was provided in a separate file or
on a written piece of paper then enter it. If no contact info arrived with the data then
TUFTS GIS Lab will automatically be filled in when the data is loaded. (The data loader
should check that this works correctly.)
D. Identification - Citation tab - Details
Change the Title to conform with this format: Location_Content _Year. Use the year the
data was last updated. See the +Titles and Names page+ for more instructions. If there are
2 files from the same year then use the month abbreviation space year (examples from the
publisher platts: Power Plants North America ( Aug. 2008) and North America (Power
Plants, Dec. 2008)
Enter the originator if it is known (this field is not currently indexed for searching).
Enter the publication date when the data was released in yyyymmdd format.
o This may differ from the date that the data was last updated which is used in the
file title, name, and currentness reference.
o If month or date is unknown, use the earliest possible date, e.g. 0101=January 1
st
.
Do not use 0000 as your mmdd or the upload will not work. (note: this is a
required field in order to be able to load the data into the TUFTS system)
Online linkage: If the data layer is part of a library cataloged dataset the "Link to this
item:" address from the catalog record in Tisch into the "Online Linkage" box.
Example: http://library.Tufts.edu/item/001394778
If the data layer was downloaded from the internet, add the address of the downloadable
layer (linking directly to the layer is preferred over linking to the general site) to the
"Online Linkage" box. (The following database access info. will be automatically entered
when loading into the TUFTS system (the data loader should check that this works
correctly): Server=vm68.atch.tufts.edu; Service=sde:sqlserver:vm68.atech.tufts.edu;
Database=gisportal
Click the Series/Publication Information tab. Enter the Publisher by copying from our
+Publisher Authorities File+ or, if the publisher is not listed, creating a new authority.
This is usually the organization that published/collected the data.
o An example: The Mass Dept. of Transportation may be the originator of a dataset
that is hosted by MASSGIS. In this case, the publisher would be " Massachusetts
Office of Geographic and Environmental Information (MassGIS)" and
"Massachusetts Department of Transportation" would be listed as originator.
Publisher is an indexed field that is specifically searchable by users within our
current system, originator is not.
E. Identification - Time Period tab
Choose Currentness Reference as either "Publication date" or "Ground condition".
Enter the Calendar Date in yyyymmdd format. (note: this is a required field in order to
be able to load the data into the TUFTS system)
F. Identification - Status tab (optional - not indexed)
Choose Progress (usually "Complete")
Choose Update Frequency (usually "None planned")
G. Identification - Spatial Domain tab
This is automatically filled in by ArcCatalog, so no need to change it.
H. Identification - Keywords tab
See the Keyword Controlled Vocabulary for notes on choosing keywords.
We have not generally used the thesaurus attribute for keywords.
Never enter the same keyword more than once for any one layer/metadata file. For
example, do not enter USA twice in the Place keywords. This will cause the uploading of
the metadata to fail.
Theme Keywords:
o Must include the type of file from these 5 words: point, line, polygon, raster,
papermap.
o Must include a category for the file from these 19 category keywords: farming,
biota, boundaries, atmosphere, economy, elevation, environment, geoscience,
health, base maps, military, waters, location, oceans, society, structure,
transportation, utilities.
o Attribute words can be very helpful in this category. The attribute table may have
a wealth of data inside it and the attributes are not searchable unless someone
manually enters them as keywords.
o Usually use plural English words.
Place Keywords:
o Enter USA for the United states.
o For states enter both the name spelled out and the capitalized 2-letter abbreviation
as keywords, e.g. Massachusetts and MA.
o Enter the smallest area covered by the dataset, e.g. don't enter New England for a
map of Massachusetts.
Stratum keywords: We do not use Temporal Keywords: Date of the most recent update
must be entered in yyyymmdd format. (note: this is a required field in order to be able
to load the data into the system)
I. Identification - Browse Graphic, Security, Cross Reference
The metadata worker does not need to do anything with these tabs.





Data Quality Tab

If information is provided in any supplementary files for this category then copy and paste it into
the metadata. (This information is not often provided.) ArcCatalog may track files getting moved
around when copied between machines. The Process Step tab lists this information sometimes.
This is not helpful information and is best if deleted, to keep the metadata looking clean.

Data Organization Tab
This information is filled in by ArcCatalog automatically and doesn't need to be changed.


Spatial Reference Tab
This information is filled in by ArcCatalog automatically and doesn't need to be changed.


Entity Attribute - Attributes - General - Definition tab

Add definitions for each attribute when known and not self-explanatory or when there are
codes necessary to use the field:
If there are multiple code definitions, you should define an enumerated domain using the
Attribute Tab - Attribute Domain Values tab.
If there are an exceedingly large number of definitions for one attribute, create an html
file and save it in the following directory: tmp/OpenGeoPortal/TuftsMetadata/
o Use the same file name as for the dataset (keep all lower case).
o Example file: http://
tmp/OpenGeoPortal/TuftsMetadata/us_tx_houston_g46usecodes_2004.html

Distribution Tab - Standard Order Process - General tab
Make sure the digital form radio button is selected.
Distribution Tab - Standard Order Process - Digital Form - General tab
Make sure the Format Name is filled in, usually with SHP, and a Transfer Size is
declared (usually filled in automatically by ArcCatalog). This value should always be in
MegaBytes (MB). Transfer size is the value that will be displayed in the search results as
filesize or layer size. For rasters, this value should be the size of the uncompressed
raster. To check the size in ArcCatalog: right click on the raster layer name -> properties


Exit the metadata editor.

Rename the file in ArcCatalog using the conventions discussed in the File Names portion on the
Titles and Names page, i.e. theme keyword_country_location_cutter number+ _year. If there are
2 updates of the same file in the same year then use the month as part of the name (example from
publisher = platts:
na_h8natgaspipelns_2008 would be na_h8natgaspipelns_08_2008 (for the august update) and
na_h8natgaspipelns_12_2008 (for the december update)
Using ArcCatalog for renaming ensures that all of the associated files get the same name and the
metadata is updated appropriately.
Enter the original file name and the new name in an Excel spreadsheet to keep track of your
work.


Duplicating Metadata
You may want to import metadata from another similar file and then modify it. For instance, if
you download wetland shapefiles for all the towns in Massachusetts, you can upload metadata
from just one file.
If you have a template to import for ArcCatalog:
In ArcCatalog, click on the "Import Metadata" button at the top of the screen. Set the
format to "FGDC CSDGM (XML)" and then click browse and navigate to the metadata
file that already exists. Click OK.

Then, click on the "Create/Update Metadata" button so that the spatial coordinates are
automatically uploaded into the metadata.
Several fields specific to each dataset will be carried over from the template metadata and will have to be
replaced. The abstract, title, keywords, and dates will likely have to be changed for each individual
dataset.
The NPS metadata tool in ArcCatalog provides a method for importing only certain pieces of a source
xml file into multiple destination files, so the metadata cataloger can copy portions of metadata across a
whole set of files at once instead of having to input the same information multiple times or import
metadata individually for each file. It's an ArcCatalog add-on from the National Park Service:
http://science.nature.nps.gov/nrdata/tools/. The help file is an attachment in this wiki page. Available
with ARCGIS 10.