The Bibliographic Framework Initiative, or BIBFRAME, is intended to provide a replacement to the MARC format as an encoding standard for library catalogs. Its aim is to move library data into a Linked Data format, allowing it to interact with other data on the Web. In this session, Emily Nimsakont, the NLC’s Cataloging Librarian, will cover the basics of BIBFRAME, describe what it can provide for users of library catalogs that MARC can’t, and outline what librarians should be aware of regarding this change in the cataloging landscape.

1. Beyond MARC
BIBFRAME and the Future
of Bibliographic Data
Emily Dust Nimsakont
Cataloging Librarian • Nebraska Library Commission
NCompass Live • January 2, 2014
Photo Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/28376044@N00/4350621750/

2. What is BIBFRAME?

3. “The Bibliographic Framework Initiative (BIBFRAME) is an
undertaking by the Library of Congress and the
community to better accommodate future needs of the
library community. A major focus of the initiative will be
to determine a transition path for the MARC 21 exchange
format to more Web based, Linked Data standards.
Zepheira and The Library of Congress are working
together to develop a Linked Data model, vocabulary and
enabling tools / services for supporting this Initiative.”
- http://bibframe.org

4. “The Bibliographic Framework Initiative (BIBFRAME) is an
undertaking by the Library of Congress and the
community to better accommodate future needs of the
library community. A major focus of the initiative will be
to determine a transition path for the MARC 21 exchange
format to more Web based, Linked Data standards.
Zepheira and The Library of Congress are working
together to develop a Linked Data model, vocabulary and
enabling tools / services for supporting this Initiative.”
- http://bibframe.org

5. What’s Wrong with MARC?

6. It’s meant for printing catalog cards.
Photo Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/28376044@N00/4350624388

7. It’s only used by libraries.
Photo Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/34606192@N00/288022773

8. It’s not very specific.
245 $b

9. It’s not very specific.
“Interpreting MARC: Where’s the Bibliographic Data?”
Jason Thomale
http://journal.code4lib.org/articles/3832

10. We need data instead of records.
Photo Credit: http://www.contentdm.org/USC/training/2013/Lampert-Southwick-20131205.pdf

11. A History of BIBFRAME
Photo Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/37657778@N07/4867695239/

12. May 2011 – Bibliographic Framework Initiative
announced by LC
October 2011 – Bibliographic Framework Plan
published – Linked Data model to be used

13. November 2012 – BIBFRAME Draft Model &
Primer published

14. January 2013 – bibframe.org launched at ALA
Midwinter
August 2013 – discussion papers updated (use
cases, annotations, resource types, authority)

15. What is
Linked
Data,
anyway?
Photo Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/49968232@N00/12364944

16. Wikipedia says…
“Linked Data describes a method of publishing
structured data, so that it can be interlinked and
become more useful. It builds upon standard
web technologies, such as HTTP and URIs - but
rather than using them to serve web pages for
human readers, it extends them to share
information in a way that can be read
automatically by computers.”
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linked_Data

17. resource
links to
resource
links to
resource
links to
resource
links to
resource

18. links to
data
data
data
data
links to
data
data
links to
data
data
data
links to
data
data
data

19. HTML
<h1>This is a heading.</h1>
<p>This is a paragraph.</p>

20. RDF/XML
<rdf:Description
rdf:about="http://www.recshop.fake/cd/Empi
re Burlesque">
<cd:artist>Bob Dylan</cd:artist>
<cd:country>USA</cd:country>
<cd:company>Columbia</cd:company>
<cd:price>10.90</cd:price>
<cd:year>1985</cd:year>
</rdf:Description>
http://www.w3schools.com/rdf/rdf_example.asp

21. Relationships are key
Photo credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/brenda-starr/3509344100/

22. We are used to connecting pieces of information
based on their context.
Title: A Christmas Carol
Author: Charles Dickens

23. Linked Data makes the relationships
explicit.
predicate
object
subject
A Christmas
Carol
has
author
Charles
Dickens

25. <rdf:RDF
xmlns:rdf="http://www.w3.org/1999/02/22-rdf-syntax-ns#"
xmlns:dc= "http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/">
<rdf:Description rdf:about="http://www.w3schools.com">
<dc:description>W3Schools -Free tutorials</dc:description>
<dc:publisher>Refsnes Data as</dc:publisher>
<dc:date>2008-09-01</dc:date>
<dc:type>Web Development</dc:type>
<dc:format>text/html</dc:format>
<dc:language>en</dc:language>
< /rdf:Description>
< /rdf:RDF>

26. BIBFRAME Model &
Vocabulary
http://bibframe.org

27. Core Classes
•
•
•
•
Work
Instance
Authority
Annotation

29. Work
“Resource reflecting a conceptual essence of the
cataloging resource”

30. Instance
“Resource reflecting an individual, material
embodiment of the Work”

31. Authority
“Resource reflecting key authority concepts that
have defined relationships reflected in the Work
and Instance”

32. Annotation
“Resource that asserts additional information
about other BIBFRAME resource”

33. BIBFRAME & RDA

34. “RDA is an important source of elements in the
vocabulary for BIBFRAME, even though it
generally aims to be independent of any
particular set of cataloging rules.”
http://www.loc.gov/bibframe/faqs/

35. http://www.niso.org/publications/isq/2013/v25no4

36. Chicken or Egg?
Photo Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/24098698@N05/5556334141

37. “The change in rules for metadata creation,
represented by RDA, will also help library
metadata to be more useful, though perhaps to
a lesser extent than BIBFRAME.”
Jason W. Dean
http://www.inthelibrarywiththeleadpipe.org/2013/cha
rles-a-cutter-and-edward-tufte-coming-to-a-librarynear-you-via-bibframe/

38. Practical Applications of
BIBFRAME

39. Resources at Bibframe.org
• Use cases
• Demonstrations
• Tools

40. Use cases
http://bibframe.org/documentation/bibframe-usecases/

41. Demonstrations
http://bibframe.org/demos/

42. Tools
http://bibframe.org/tools/
Comparison service
Transformation service

43. Libraries
experimenting
with
BIBFRAME
Photo Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/10862752@N07/2575598759

44. BIBFRAME Early Experimenters
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Library of Congress
National Library of Medicine
British Library
Deutsche Nationalbibliothek
Princeton University
George Washington University
OCLC

45. Colorado College and University of
Denver
http://journal.code4lib.org/articles/7349

46. What’s next?
Photo Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/22812192@N00/4061903846

47. Timeline?
“The MARC standard is responsible for the
creation of millions of bibliographic records from
all parts of the globe. We recognize the need to
continue supporting MARC during the transition,
and, most likely, for years to come as libraries
determine their timetable for making a change.”
http://bibframe.org/contribute
Photo Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/8525214@N06/9661431073

48. How will catalogers’ jobs
change?
Photo Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/77476789@N00/2304874364

49. “I believe we will
certainly need to
change most of our
cataloging habits,
standards, and
tools…but that losing
the quality and
granularity of the
data itself should not
be a requirement.”
Gildas Illien, BnF
http://www.niso.org/publi
cations/isq/2013/v25no4

50. RDF/XML
<rdf:Description
rdf:about="http://www.recshop.fake/cd/Empi
re Burlesque">
<cd:artist>Bob Dylan</cd:artist>
<cd:country>USA</cd:country>
<cd:company>Columbia</cd:company>
<cd:price>10.90</cd:price>
<cd:year>1985</cd:year>
</rdf:Description>
http://www.w3schools.com/rdf/rdf_example.asp

51. Resources
Bibliographic Framework Initiative Informational Site
http://www.loc.gov/bibframe/
Bibliographic Framework as a Web of Data
http://www.loc.gov/bibframe/pdf/marcld-report11-21-2012.pdf
Bibliographic Framework Initiative
http://bibframe.org
BIBFRAME Listserv Archives
http://listserv.loc.gov/listarch/bibframe.html

52. Resources
Information Standards Quarterly Winter 2013 (v.25,
no. 4)
http://www.niso.org/publications/isq/2013/v25no4
Charles A. Cutter and Edward Tufte: Coming to a
Library Near You, via BIBFRAME by Jason W. Dean
http://www.inthelibrarywiththeleadpipe.org/2013/c
harles-a-cutter-and-edward-tufte-coming-to-alibrary-near-you-via-bibframe/

53. Resources
– Linked Data in the Creases by Dorthea Salo
http://lj.libraryjournal.com/2013/12/opinion/peer-topeer-review/linked-data-in-the-creases-peer-to-peerreview/
– The Relationship between BIBFRAME and OCLC’s
Linked-Data Model of Bibliographic Description: A
Working Paper
http://oclc.org/content/dam/research/publications/li
brary/2013/2013-05.pdf
– The Road to BIBFRAME by Angela Kroeger
http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/01639
374.2013.823584

54. Thank you!
Emily Dust Nimsakont
Cataloging Librarian
Nebraska Library Commission
1-800-307-2665
emily.dust.nimsakont@nebraska.gov