GIMD, the Limited Corporation for Information Management and Documentation (Gesellschaft für Informationsmanagement und Dokumentation mbH), offers the complete range of services covering every aspect of information and documentation. All steps, from information procurement to evaluation and structuring, and finally, archiving, may be commissioned individually, or be combined in any way desired in a building-block system.
What we do with information ...
Documents and information may be processed in many ways. Depending on type, format, and volume, a content-based, technical, or visual edit may be advisable.
Next to research, information procurement is a core task in documentary activities. In numerous constellations, information must be found and then, if necessary, procured. For information procurement, we collaborate with renowned service providers in Germany and abroad. This way, we have all necessary information readily available in the shortest time possible.
In view of the steadily rising flood of information, the evaluation of information is gaining increasing significance. Important items must be distinguished and separated from unimportant ones. In most areas, this requires comprehensive expertise and long experience in the respective field, and a constant focus on current development in research and technology.
Digitalization creates digital representations of physical objects or analog media. Information previously available only in analog formats may now be stored and processed digitally. This effectuates considerable improvement of availability. Closely connected to digitalization are the areas of processing, content-based cataloging, and standardization.
Systematic storage of information usually includes storing meta-information, such as date, time, editor, etc. This meta-information is an indispensable pre-condition for demand management. Additionally, it can serve to meet official requirements for documentation. Application areas for the storage of meta-information are, e.g., the processing of e-mail correspondence, customer inquiries, etc.
During formal cataloging, document data are captured according to formal guidelines. For instance, the artist, title, composer, year, etc., of a music CD may be registered in a library catalog. Content descriptions, as in subject cataloging, are not entered at this stage. Formal cataloging is performed according to the respective applicable standards.
Content-based cataloging deals with the question of how to gain access to and orientation about the contents of documents. Content-based cataloging comprises the entirety of methods and tools for the content description of documents. It creates added informational value by analyzing, describing, compacting, and ordering document contents. The object of content-based cataloging is the enhancement of retrievability and of relevance ratings. Its quality is measured by the completeness and accuracy of results output during a search.
Indexing is the process of describing the essential content components of an object with the aid of individual designations. Designations may be assigned freely, taken from the document or a documentary language (e.g. a thesaurus). Within the framework of a search query, the entirety of designations deriving from the indexing processes has filter, respectively access functions.
Classification is a method of content-based cataloging. Ideally, in classificatory content-based cataloging, every document is assigned exactly one notation, i.e. a content-descriptive symbol. As artificial documentary languages, classifications are closely connected to the aspects of hierarchy and order. They predominately serve to perform the rough cataloging, segmentation, and establishment of document stocks.
Converting is the transfer of a file from one file format into another. This is also possible for complete data stocks (e.g. databases). Only in rare cases, however, does this result in a one-to-one allocation, since, as a rule, the new system is intended to provide some form of improvement. Then, it mostly becomes necessary to re-process the machine-converted data, e.g. to divide it across new database fields or to update its contents, in order to be able to utilize new functions in a better way.
Research and information procurement are core tasks in documentary activities. In numerous constellations, information must be found and then, if necessary, procured. Research can be performed both on a case-by-case basis and with the aid of specific search strategies developed especially to meet a client’s needs.
In view of the steadily rising flood of information, the selection of information is gaining increasing significance. Important items must be distinguished and separated from unimportant ones. In most areas, this requires comprehensive expertise and long experience in the respective field, and a constant focus on current development in research and technology.
Standardization means giving information, names, measurements, and many more items a unified form, as unified and unambiguous notations are of extreme importance in Information Science. A thesaurus, e.g., lists standardized vocabulary. Another example of standardization is the matrix of key opinion-leaders in various fields generated by GIMD, which standardizes names, addresses, etc.
Even if at first glance most documents show some kind of structure, it almost always is an outer structure that merely maps a content outline for the reader. In reality, it consists of classifications, respectively formattings that often are not used in a unified and unambiguous manner. Mostly, the documents in question must be re-structured manually, if they are to be utilized for databases, CMS, or electronic-publishing products. Relevant examples are documents in MS-Word, Adobe PDF, or various (DTP)composition and layout systems intended to be made researchable.
Information comes from ...
Information is edited/processed for ...
Analog archive systems only offer limited search options, therefore they are increasingly replaced by digital systems. Loss-free digitalization, however, poses high demands on project management, in order to ensure the completeness and integrity of the archive by appropriate checking and monitoring.
Library systems are deployed for the computer-based execution of the most various types of librarian tasks. Modern library management systems bring together different types of media in a search mask. Other application areas include cataloging and lending.
A Content Management System is a software for the joint creation, processing, and organization of contents. In many cases, the system accesses a database in which the contents are filed.
Data is information represented in a formalized manner, for the purposes of transferring, interpretation, or processing. Content-linked data is aggregated in files. Databases, in turn, consist of several logically interdependent files.
A Document Management System enables the data-driven management of electronic documents. Various and diverse kinds of information can be handled, precisely targeted in searches, and electronically archived.
Electronic-Publishing Systems enable the publication of e-books and digital journals. Digital libraries and catalogs immensely simplify access to information.
A hyperlink is a cross-reference in a document leading to another document or another place in the same document. If the hyperlink is executed, the object linked in it is called up automatically. Additional information may also be stored in a link. Hyperlinks are an essential characteristic of the Internet but may also be utilized in many documents.
Information systems are all systems that have the purpose of satisfying information needs. Information is procured, combined, disseminated, and processed. Well-known examples of information systems are search engines, in-house information systems in organizations, cash register and navigation systems.
An intranet is an internal computer network within a company or an organization that is not accessible to the public. As opposed to the Internet, functions and contents may be determined independently. An intranet, for instance, provides communication options for its users, ways and means of searching information and of joint processing of files, and the joint access to resources.
Press reviews are compilations of current press releases on the basis of media observation. On the one hand, they are used to glean information on current developments both in a general sense and in selected areas. On the other hand, they provide a quick and manageable overview of the representation of one’s own company in the public sphere.
A register is a supplementary cataloging of documents Register entries refer to one or more places in the document where more information may be found. Registers may be created for all types of documents. They have the benefit of saving much time in searches. The method of arrangement of register entries depends on the individual needs and requirements of users.
Search engines are programs for researching documents. They can be stored both locally on a computer and inside a network. All documents found by a search engine are indexed, and the resulting index is permanently updated. Based on its index, the search engine outputs documents subject to a ranking process.
In Information Science, thesauri are natural-language-based documentary languages for content-based cataloging. They include an ordered compilation of terms and designations that serve to index, store, and retrieve documents. Already extant thesauri may be used in various fields and application areas. In other cases, however, it may be expedient to develop and maintain a customized thesaurus. This enables continuous adjustment and further development according to the client’s own specific requirement profile.
A Wiki is a website whose contents may not only be read but also be modified or supplemented by users. Apart from well-known on-line encyclopedias like Wikipedia, wikis are also utilized on the intranets of many business companies, especially within the framework of knowledge management systems.