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Metadata Formats
FiGURE 6.3
MARC21XML Record
Dublin Core
Serendipity can be a funny thing, since small decisions or discussions
can have a lasting effect on the world around us. For example, in 1980–
81, David J. Bradley, a computer engineer at IBM, wrote a few lines of
code that would forever change the way that people interact with present-
day computers. Bradley introduced the three-key sequence combination
“CTRL+ALT+DEL.” In what he would later describe in an interview as “not
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a memorable event,” Bradley’s few lines of code were designed specifically
to give developers a set of escape sequences to do administrative functions
before powering down a computer; the lines were never meant to be seen
by the general public. However, this three-key sequence has become one of
the primary methods that are used today to perform the actions of logging
on/off, locking, and powering down one’s computer. In much the same
serendipitous way, Dublin Core has surprisingly become one of the most
important metadata frameworks within the library community and beyond.
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