Benefits and Purpose
The benefits of metadata are well-documented on the Web. Suffice it to say that metadata is necessary for unlocking the value of content across the site. It powers the dynamic display of content on pages, serves as the basis for filters in faceted search, and defines the dimensions in analytics by which content is measured and tracked.
The purpose of this page is to explain a few key concepts in the metadata implementation on SAP Community.
The Ever Evolving Metadata Schema
The metadata schema that powers much of the experience behind these pages comes from thousands of official terms in the SAP corporate taxonomy of SAP products, solutions, and industries, as well as events and other topics. Of course, the schema will adapt as new products hit the market and technologies emerge.
Managed Tags and User Tags
As stated, the metadata schema consists of a set of "official" terms governed by SAP. These are managed tags. You'll find the set of available tags on the Browse Community page. You can also search for tags using this handy tag browser developed by community member Helmut Tammen.
In addition to applying managed tags to a piece of content, users may apply "user" or "social" tags upon creating a piece of content (See How to Create a Blog for more details). A user-defined tag is a word, group of words, or text string that further categorizes a piece of content.
User generated content - meaning blogs and questions - can be aggregated around both managed and user tags. User tags, commonly known in aggregate form as a "folksonomy," provide additional specificity to content and flexibility in the content landscape. User tags not only provide further characterization of a piece of content, but help users extend their questions and conversation beyond subjects afforded by managed tags.
When writing a blog or submitting a question, users may come up with their own user tags or apply existing ones.
Primary Tags
A primary tag is a managed tag that a contributor designates as the main subject matter of the piece of content he or she is creating. Users may choose any of the selectable tags in the primary tag field, as seen in this screen shot of the community tag picker. (For recent improvements to the tag picker, read Introducing the Next Generation Tag Picker.)