圖書館目錄長久以來以MARC作為資訊資源描述的後設資料(Metadata),然而為因應電子資源的快速增長與實際描述數位資源的需求,必須考慮資訊的互通性,以及簡化資源描述的項目。因此,將MARC轉化為依據XML Schema所設計的後設資料物件描述綱要(Metadata Object Description, MODS)即為圖書館界所做的因應方式之一。本文以MODS的產生與發展為主軸,探討其優、缺點,並以美國國會圖書館MINERVA計畫與澳洲國家圖書館ANBDMP計畫兩個實例作為標的,檢視其實際應用的狀況。
There is a long history that MARC has been used as a Metadata to describe information resources in library cataloge. To meet the needs of describing growing electronic resources, the interoperability of Metadata and the simplification of object description are in great demand. Transforming MARC to Metadata Object Description Schema (MODS), which was designed based on the standards of XML Schema, is one of the library community's response to the changes. The authors discuss the advantages and disadvantages of using MODS. Two examples, MINERVA (Project of the Library of Congress in America) and ANBDMP (Project of the Australia National Library), are also reviewed in this paper to examine the applicability of MODS.