LibGuides: Metadata Basics: Harvesting

Harvesting

Metadata harvesting is the automated collection of metadata descriptions from different sources to create useful aggregations of metadata and related services. The Open Archives Initiative Protocol for Metadata Harvesting (OAI-PMH), which uses XML over HTTP to exchange data on the World Wide Web, was introduced in 2001. OAI-PMH is widely used by digital libraries, institutional repositories, and digital archives, as well as commercial services, to facilitate data exchange among systems and expand access to collections.

A few common examples of aggregators using OAI-PMH:

Digital Public Library of America (DPLA)
DPLA aggregates metadata from America's libraries, archives, and museums, providing an open access portal to discover materials and a platform to enable innovative reuse of DPLA content.
National Science Digital Library
NSDL, established by the National Science Foundation and hosted by the University Corporation for Atmospheric Research (UCAR), is an open-access digital library of learning collections for the sciences, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education community.
OAIster
A union catalog of millions of records representing open access resources from around the world, managed by the Online Computer Library Center (OCLC).
Open Language Archives Community
OLAC, an international partnership of institutions and individuals, aggregates metadata from participating archives to create a worldwide virtual library of language resources.
Portal to Texas History
Created and maintained by the University of North Texas Libraries, the Portal aggregates metadata from partners across Texas to provide a gateway to rare, historical, and primary source materials from or about Texas. The Portal is also a service hub for The Digital Public Library of America.