Migration of a library catalogue into RDA linked open data

Abstract

The catalogue of the Biblioteca Virtual Miguel de Cervantes contains about 200,000 records which were originally created in compliance with the MARC21 standard. The entries in the catalogue have been recently migrated to a new relational database whose data model adheres to the conceptual models promoted by the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA), in particular, to the FRBR and FRAD specifications. The database content has been later mapped, by means of an automated procedure, to RDF triples which employ basically the RDA vocabulary (Resource Description and Access) to describe the entities, as well as their properties and relationships. This RDF-based semantic description of the catalogue is now accessible online through an interface which supports browsing and searching the information. Due to their open nature, these public data can be easily linked and used for new applications created by external developers and institutions. The methods applied for the automation of the conversion, which build upon open-source software components, are described here.