Annotation

Why Trust Techopedia

What Does Annotation Mean?

Annotations are a kind of metadata that makes references to the data itself but is not an actual part of it. Annotations can include notes on metadata, such as comments on the data. Annotations can be made in a special program or as part of a markup language or programming language.

Advertisements

Techopedia Explains Annotation

Annotations allow users to add comments to data. They can range from simple sticky notes to bookmarking tools that allow users to add comments to websites they want to save.

Annotations are a part of note-taking programs such as Evernote and other organizing programs. Users can add notes about web pages, text notes and photos they’ve taken to remember them later. Other more formalized tools are used is areas such as medical imaging to add information to x-rays or other images.

Advertisements

Related Terms

Margaret Rouse
Technology Expert
Margaret Rouse
Technology Expert

Margaret is an award-winning technical writer and teacher known for her ability to explain complex technical subjects to a non-technical business audience. Over the past twenty years, her IT definitions have been published by Que in an encyclopedia of technology terms and cited in articles by the New York Times, Time Magazine, USA Today, ZDNet, PC Magazine, and Discovery Magazine. She joined Techopedia in 2011. Margaret's idea of a fun day is helping IT and business professionals learn to speak each other’s highly specialized languages.