Meta-Information Structures for Networked Information Resources

This article develops a model of meta-information architectures (header, local index, and directory) and presents three current or proposed meta-information structures for networked information resources with applicability to organization and access in libraries and networked information environments. Special emphasis is given to the Text Encoding Initiative's TEI Header and Independent Header as a model for meta-information for academic and library needs. Recommendation is made for the specification of a generalized SGML meta-information header based on the principles of the TEI Independent Header, to address the needs of cataloging, automatic processing, and serving of networked information resources.