1. Metadata is data (information) that provides information about other data.
2. Three distinct types of metadata exist: structural metadata, descriptive metadata, and administrative metadata.
3. Metadata means "data about data". Although the "meta" prefix (from the Greek preposition and prefix μετά-) means "after" or "beyond", it is used to mean "about" in epistemology. Metadata is defined as the data providing information about one or more aspects of the data; it is used to summarize basic information about data which can make tracking and working with specific data easier. Some examples include: Means of creation of the data, Purpose of the data, Time and date of creation, Creator or author of the data, Location on a computer network where the data was created, Standards used, File size.
4. "metadata describes a resource for purposes such as discovery and identification. It can include elements such as title, abstract, author, and keywords."
5. "Metadata summarizes basic information about data, which can make finding and working with particular instances of data easier. For example, author, date created and date modified and file size are examples of very basic document metadata. Having the abilty to filter through that metadata makes it much easier for someone to locate a specific document."