metaFAD is an open-source platform for cataloguing museum collections, archives, and libraries. It enables integrated and customizable management for optimal access to digital cultural resources.
metaFAD was developed in close collaboration with ICCU, ICAR and ICCD, the central institutes of the Ministry of Culture. It serves as the standard management solution in the re-engineering projects for national repositories in the archival sector — Archivio Digitale, Antenati, Memoria.Rete degli Archivi per non dimenticare — and in the bibliographic sector — Alphabetica, Manus Online, Edit16. In the museum field, metaFAD is used as an inventory system, pre-catalog, and catalog by the digitization projects associated with the Digital Library.
It reduces adoption costs and encourages greater investment in maintenance, updates, feature integration, and customization.
The collections can be configured into digital exhibitions and thematic paths. A Portal Entity Builder supports the enrichment of relationships between the contents.
The publication is built on a user-friendly interface, responsive on mobile devices, and compliant with content accessibility standards.
The independence of the data management system from the publishing area facilitates the integration and differentiated optimization of the two environments.
The images are accessible via a viewer compliant with IIIF standards, and the catalog search utilizes a powerful engine combined with intuitive filters.
Cataloging meets industry standards, and a Linked Open Data repository supports semantic mapping and data querying.
The software is AGID qualified as SaaS and CSP Cloud Service Provider. Installation can proceed on certified cloud or on proprietary servers.
From acquisition to access: one tool, one single point of access
metaFAD supports cataloging by multiple institutions, with separate management of users and collections, as well as sharing of common resources such as authority files and dictionaries. It allows for an unlimited number of users and provides vertical settings for roles, access, and operational permissions for each type of content.
metaFAD structures the cataloguing records according to the standards defined for the three heritage domains: ICCD regulations for museum collections, EAD3 schemas and standards from ICAR, and EAC-CPF and SCONS 2 formats for archives, along with UNIMARC standards for reading and MODS and TEI-MS schemas for libraries.
In metaFAD, the upload and archiving of images and 3D digital objects take place within a management area separate from the cataloguing area. Advanced tools for metadata creation, classification, and search of digital iconographic resources support their connection to the catalogue records.
metaFAD offers native integration with national cataloging systems. It operates in import and export with SigecWeb for museum heritage, interacts with SBN and ManusOnline for library and manuscript collections, and with SIAS and SIUSA for the acquisition of archival complexes, as well as with the Sistema Archivistico Nazionale through OAI-Provider.
metaFAD represents the most technologically advanced choice for proper digitization: its use in the main national information systems for cultural heritage ensures, even in the long term, adherence and alignment of the management components with industry requirements. metaFAD is based on a constantly updated source code and a modular architecture that easily adapts to the specific needs of each cultural institution.
