Dokumentkatalog

Dokumentkatalog is a structured catalog that describes and indexes documents and records within an organization. It supports discovery, retrieval, and management by providing metadata and references to documents, which may be stored in different locations or systems. In practice, the katalog often holds metadata and pointers to files rather than storing the full documents themselves.

Core features include metadata schemas that capture title, author, dates, subject, keywords, classification, retention and disposition, identifiers, version history, and access rights. It supports relationships between items such as drafts and final versions, predecessor/successor links, and links to related materials. Advanced catalogs offer search, facets, full-text indexing, and audit trails, as well as workflow integration for approvals and changes. Classification structures like taxonomies and controlled vocabularies improve findability and consistency.

Standards and implementation considerations involve interoperable metadata formats and, where relevant, preservation metadata. Common approaches reference standards such as Dublin Core or MODS, and use machine-readable formats like XML or JSON. A dokumentkatalog is typically integrated with other enterprise systems, including content management systems (CMS), document management systems (DMS), and enterprise resource planning (ERP), and may be part of a broader digital preservation or governance strategy.

Use cases include government archives, libraries, universities, healthcare, and regulatory environments where provenance, accountability, and compliance are important. Challenges include ensuring metadata quality and consistency, maintaining governance over long periods, controlling access and privacy, and achieving interoperability across heterogeneous systems.