Introduction to DACS and Brief History

Original Lecture Video

Intro to DACS

Data Content Standards

• Prescribe the way description is applied to a resource (AACR2, APPM, DACS); consistent way to record information such as dates, names, quantities of materials, sort of punctuation needed to use, things we MUST include and what is optional
• DACS emerged out of APPM
• APPM was the first archival content description thing out there for archives; based off AACR2

Data Structure Standards

• govern the way data is presented and communicated for machine readability; makes data more granular; helps break up larger pieces of data into the component parts
• Examples: MARC, EAD, METS

Data Value Standards

• Provide consistent access points for discovery
• Examples: LCNAF, LCSH, AAT

1980's: Archival community decided to piggyback on AACR2 and MARC; developed APPM
Archivist thought since their collections were unique so why need standard? Realized they needed to help the user of the archives

Before DACS....got special format rules for movies, oral histories etc

Benefits of APPM

• Provided standardized description at the collection level; not meant to replace a finding aid
• Played will with others ie AACR2 compliant bibliographic records
• Allowed archives to adopt MARC, the primary data structure standard of the time, and contribute descriptions to the local and union catalogs, and bibliographic utilities such as OCLC and RLIN

Limitations of APPM:

• Meant primarily on collection level records
• Little support for multilevel description; not created to standardized finding aids and inventories
• Bibliographic model borrowed from AACR2 marginalized crucial contextual information as “notes”
• Rules for choosing access points and creating name headings written to manage author names, not creator names; look at title page to determine the name of the author but that probably won't work in archives

CUSTARD – Canadian US Task Force on Archival Descriptions - 2001

• Harmonize US and Canadian descriptive practice (AAPM and Rules for Archival Description)
• Incorporate international standards: ISAD and ISAAR (CPF)
• Rules for all types of archival material
• Rules for all levels of description (from items all the way to collections/fonds)
• Output neutral (not tied to a particular data structure standard; can be used for EAD, MARC, or another database of the repository's choice)
• Canada revised this again and it diverged from US

DACS Genealogy

APPM V DACS

• APPM – supports single-level description only (catalog records); mimics ISBD areas of description someonf which are not applicable to archival materials
• DACS – Grounded in archival principles; supports both single level and multi-level description (can create both finding aids and catalog records from the same set of rules!); Give more guidance on content of the data element (ie Just what information should go in an administrative history)