2.13 Provide information about pages and sites in metadata

Rationale

Good quality metadata improves usability of search facilities by providing useful and accurate keywords and descriptions of content and media types. The descriptions and summaries of page contents displayed in search results are often drawn from metadata which is inserted in web pages.

Metadata can also provide important contextual information to help users understand and navigate through content. Examples of metadata include descriptions of the contents and structural organisation of complex tables or long lists.

Without metadata, the information on your site is more difficult to share with users and other computers through data exchange facilities. It is difficult to archive and retrieve content if standard metadata schemes are not followed.

Directions and Techniques

Provide contextual clues in HTML lists using CSS techniques

Using UL and OL for lists, combined with CSS can provide contextual clues in lists. This helps users navigate through longer, more complex lists.

Insert metadata in web pages

Refer to this over view of metadata elements which can be included in the HTML of the web page.

Refer to the Inter departmental Recommended Guidelines for Public Sector Organisations

The Inter Departmental Recommended Guidelines for Public Sector Organisations describes recommendations on metadata standards for Irish public sector organisations. This document is relevant for anyone developing a website for Irish public sector organisations.

Check the HTML for META tags

If metadata has been included in the web page, it will not be visible. You have to check the HTML code to see it. To do this, open a web page on your browser, then select the option to "View Source" or "View Source Code". This will open the HTML code in a new window. You don't have to understand HTML to see if Meta tags are included. If they are present, they will be near the top of the source code, in the first few lines.