5 steps to becoming a JISC IE content provider Andy Powell UKOLN, University of Bath

The problem space… from perspective of ‘data consumer’ need to interact with multiple collections of stuff - bibliographic, full-text, data, image, video, etc. delivered thru multiple Web sites few cross-collection discovery services (with exception of big search engines like Google, but lots of stuff is not available to Google, i.e. it is part of the ‘invisible Web’) from perspective of ‘data provider’ few agreed mechanisms for disclosing availability of content

from perspective of ‘data consumer’

need to interact with multiple collections of stuff - bibliographic, full-text, data, image, video, etc.

delivered thru multiple Web sites

few cross-collection discovery services (with exception of big search engines like Google, but lots of stuff is not available to Google, i.e. it is part of the ‘invisible Web’)

from perspective of ‘data provider’

few agreed mechanisms for disclosing availability of content

The problem(s)… portal problem how to provide seamless discovery across multiple content providers appropriate-copy problem how to provide access to the most appropriate copy of a resource (given access rights, preferences, cost, speed of delivery, etc.)

portal problem

how to provide seamless discovery across multiple content providers

appropriate-copy problem

how to provide access to the most appropriate copy of a resource (given access rights, preferences, cost, speed of delivery, etc.)

A solution… an information environment framework of machine-oriented services allowing the end-user to discover , access , use , publish resources across a range of content providers move away from lots of stand-alone Web sites... ...towards more coherent whole remove need for use to interact with multiple content providers

an information environment

framework of machine-oriented services allowing the end-user to

discover , access , use , publish resources across a range of content providers

move away from lots of stand-alone Web sites...

...towards more coherent whole

remove need for use to interact with multiple content providers

JISC Information Env. discover finding stuff across multiple content providers access streamlining access to appropriate copy content providers expose metadata about their content for searching harvesting alerting develop services that bring stuff together portals (subject portals, media-specific portals, geospatial portals, institutional portals, VLEs, …)

discover

finding stuff across multiple content providers

access

streamlining access to appropriate copy

content providers expose metadata about their content for

searching

harvesting

alerting

develop services that bring stuff together

portals (subject portals, media-specific portals, geospatial portals, institutional portals, VLEs, …)

Example scenarios Integration of local and remote information resources with a variety of 'discovery' services (for example the RDN subject portals, institutional and commercial portals and personal reference managers) allowing students, lecturers and researchers to find quality assured resources from a wide range of content providers including commercial content providers and those within the higher and further education community and elsewhere. Seamless linking from 'discovery' services to appropriate 'delivery' services. Integration of information resources and learning object repositories with Virtual Learning Environments (for example, allowing seamless, persistent links from a course reading list or other learning objects to the most appropriate copy of an information resource). Open access to e-print archives and other systems for managing the intellectual output of institutions.

Integration of local and remote information resources with a variety of 'discovery' services (for example the RDN subject portals, institutional and commercial portals and personal reference managers) allowing students, lecturers and researchers to find quality assured resources from a wide range of content providers including commercial content providers and those within the higher and further education community and elsewhere.

Seamless linking from 'discovery' services to appropriate 'delivery' services.

Integration of information resources and learning object repositories with Virtual Learning Environments (for example, allowing seamless, persistent links from a course reading list or other learning objects to the most appropriate copy of an information resource).

Open access to e-print archives and other systems for managing the intellectual output of institutions.

A note about ‘portals’ ‘ portal’ word possibly slightly misleading presentation layer will contain lots of user-focused services… subject portal reading list and other tools in VLE commercial ‘portals’ (ISI Web of Knowledge, ingenta, etc.) library ‘portal’ (e.g. Zportal or MetaLib) SFX service component personal desktop reference manager (e.g. Endnote)

‘ portal’ word possibly slightly misleading

presentation layer will contain lots of user-focused services…

subject portal

reading list and other tools in VLE

commercial ‘portals’ (ISI Web of Knowledge, ingenta, etc.)

library ‘portal’ (e.g. Zportal or MetaLib)

SFX service component

personal desktop reference manager (e.g. Endnote)

Technical summary Z39.50 (Bath Profile), OAI, RSS are key ‘discovery’ technologies... … and by implication, XML and simple/unqualified Dublin Core portals provide ‘discovery’ services across multiple content providers… access to resources via OpenURL and resolvers where appropriate Z39.50 and OAI not mutually exclusive general need for all services to know what other services are available to them

Z39.50 (Bath Profile), OAI, RSS are key ‘discovery’ technologies...

… and by implication, XML and simple/unqualified Dublin Core

portals provide ‘discovery’ services across multiple content providers…

access to resources via OpenURL and resolvers where appropriate

Z39.50 and OAI not mutually exclusive

general need for all services to know what other services are available to them

JISC Information Env. Broker/Aggregator Portal Portal Content providers End-user Portal Broker/Aggregator Authentication Authorisation Collect’n Desc Service Desc Resolver Inst’n Profile Shared services Provision layer Fusion layer Presentation layer

What do you need to do? support machine oriented (m2m) interfaces to your content/services not contentious... in line with ‘Web services’ approach 5 steps… expose your metadata share news and alerts become an OpenURL source become an OpenURL target use persistent URLs

support machine oriented (m2m) interfaces to your content/services

not contentious...

in line with ‘Web services’ approach

5 steps…

expose your metadata

share news and alerts

become an OpenURL source

become an OpenURL target

use persistent URLs

Allow searching… support distributed searching of your content by remote services offer Bath Profile compliant Z39.50 target use Z39.50 to expose simple Dublin Core metadata about your content note possible use of SOAP (Simple Object Access Protocol) in the future

support distributed searching of your content by remote services

offer Bath Profile compliant Z39.50 target

use Z39.50 to expose simple Dublin Core metadata about your content

note possible use of SOAP (Simple Object Access Protocol) in the future

Allow harvesting… enable remote services to gather your metadata records offer Open Archives Initiative repository using the OAI Protocol for Metadata Harvesting use OAI-PMH to expose simple DC metadata about your content ‘ as well as’ OR ‘instead of’ offering Z39.50 target

enable remote services to gather your metadata records

offer Open Archives Initiative repository using the OAI Protocol for Metadata Harvesting

use OAI-PMH to expose simple DC metadata about your content

‘ as well as’ OR ‘instead of’ offering Z39.50 target

Share news/alerts using RSS offer machine-readable news and alerting channel(s) news/alerts might include service announcements list(s) of new resources RSS = RDF Site Summary simple XML application use RSS in addition to existing email alerting

offer machine-readable news and alerting channel(s)

news/alerts might include

service announcements

list(s) of new resources

RSS = RDF Site Summary

simple XML application

use RSS in addition to existing email alerting

Become an OpenURL source adopt ‘open’, ‘context-sensitive’ linking in the form of OpenURLs add OpenURLs into search results e.g. SFX buttons next to each result support mechanism to associate preferred OpenURL resolver with each user e.g. cookies or user-preferences database

adopt ‘open’, ‘context-sensitive’ linking in the form of OpenURLs

add OpenURLs into search results

e.g. SFX buttons next to each result

support mechanism to associate preferred OpenURL resolver with each user

e.g. cookies or user-preferences database

Become an OpenURL target allow links back into your services from OpenURL resolvers publicise your ‘link-to’ syntax, e.g. ISSN-based URLs DOI-based URLs support deep-linking direct to resources direct to resource, OR indirect via abstract page

allow links back into your services from OpenURL resolvers

publicise your ‘link-to’ syntax, e.g.

ISSN-based URLs

DOI-based URLs

support deep-linking direct to resources

direct to resource, OR

indirect via abstract page

Use persistent IDs Z39.50, OAI-PMH and RSS expose your metadata to other services allow deep-linking from metadata (e.g. search results) to resource deep-linking URLs should be unique and persistent possibly based on DOIs why? allows long-term use of URLs, e.g. in course reading list

Z39.50, OAI-PMH and RSS expose your metadata to other services

allow deep-linking from metadata (e.g. search results) to resource

deep-linking URLs should be unique and persistent

possibly based on DOIs

why? allows long-term use of URLs, e.g. in course reading list

Authentication issues how do I control access? same as currently - using Athens (or your own system) user challenged on entry to ‘portal’ portal can determine some ‘search’ access rights from Athens, but you may need to ‘trust’ portal ZBLSA portal/pub query mechanism you retain final control at point of access

how do I control access?

same as currently - using Athens (or your own system)

user challenged on entry to ‘portal’

portal can determine some ‘search’ access rights from Athens, but you may need to ‘trust’ portal

ZBLSA portal/pub query mechanism

you retain final control at point of access

Branding vs. visibility will exposing metadata to external service lead to loss of branding? not really - expect external services to carry your branding as ‘quality stamp’ e.g. RSS channel carries your name, URL and logo following URL in search results leads direct to your site so more visibility rather than less

will exposing metadata to external service lead to loss of branding?

not really - expect external services to carry your branding as ‘quality stamp’

e.g. RSS channel carries your name, URL and logo

following URL in search results leads direct to your site

so more visibility rather than less

Information flow... not just about a one-way low of information - from ‘you’ to ‘us’ also exposes content within the academic community for example... RDN offers Z39.50 access to 60,000 resource descriptions (soon to offer SOAP interface) you can integrate this into your ‘portals’

not just about a one-way low of information - from ‘you’ to ‘us’

also exposes content within the academic community

for example...

RDN offers Z39.50 access to 60,000 resource descriptions (soon to offer SOAP interface)

you can integrate this into your ‘portals’

Common sense Z, OAI and RSS based on metadata ‘fusion’ - merging metadata records from multiple content providers need shared understanding and metadata practice across DNER need to agree ‘cataloguing guidelines’ and terminology 4 key areas subject classification - what is this resource about? audience level - who is this resource aimed at? resource type - what kind of resource is this? certification - who has created this resource?

Z, OAI and RSS based on metadata ‘fusion’ - merging metadata records from multiple content providers

need shared understanding and metadata practice across DNER

need to agree ‘cataloguing guidelines’ and terminology

4 key areas

subject classification - what is this resource about?

audience level - who is this resource aimed at?

resource type - what kind of resource is this?

certification - who has created this resource?

A shared problem space problems faced by end-users are shared across sectors and communities student looking for information from variety of bibliographic sources lecturer searching for e-learning resources from multiple repositories researcher working across multiple data-sets and associated research publications a.n.other looking to buy or sell a second-hand car

problems faced by end-users are shared across sectors and communities

student looking for information from variety of bibliographic sources

lecturer searching for e-learning resources from multiple repositories

researcher working across multiple data-sets and associated research publications

a.n.other looking to buy or sell a second-hand car

IMS Digital Repositories Repositories Resource Utilizers Directories Vocabulary Competency Metadata Repositories Organizations Traders Access Management MANAGE RIGHTS OBLIGATIONS CONTROL ACCESS AUTHENTICATE AUTHORISE AUDIT Procurement NEGOTIATE TRADE MAKE PAYMENT SEARCH Learner Creator Infoseeker Assets Metadata DISCOVER REQUEST USE Presentation Mediation Provision People Agent RESOLVE Registries STORE STORE EXPOSE MANAGE STORE EXPOSE MANAGE DELIVER (Query, Browse, Follow Path) ACCESS GATHER PUBLISH MANAGE ALERT EXPOSE