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Sunday, March 28, 2010

Speaker Robin Dale - Digital Commonwealth 2010

Getting Started with the Digital Commonwealth, by Robin Dale

There are two types of use for the Digital Commonwealth:

  • portal: only metadata. It does not have to include digital pictures.
  • depository: stores a digital collection of images which is searchable.
The Digital Commonwealth Portal
  • Dynamically created to display recent activity
  • Includes links
How do you get info into the portal?
  • Open Archives Initiative (OAI) protocol for metadata processing
  • Indexed
  • The portal is dynamically updated
  • OAI works with a static repository document
The depository lives on server (not on your real estate)
  • You can link from the Digital Commonwealth to your online digital collection until dynamic option is available


The Digital Commonwealth Repository

How the Repository is different from the Portal:
  • There is a separate fee.
  • It is a hosted service.
  • The licensing is temporary until database is used locally
  • The local institute still owns images
  • The Digital Commonwealth will use the same branding that is on your library's site - institutions, collections, objects, logo
Objects in the Repository:
  • The objects are dynamically updated.
  • High resolution images come in a variety of sizes.
  • You can include metadata in same screen as your image.
  • You can link into your catalog
  • The Digital Commonwealth will not change your image.
Getting Started:
  1. The Initial Consultation
  • One-to-One.
  • You will be consulting with professionals such as speaker Robin L. Dale
  • You will be discussing what is important about your collection what are you are known for.
2. You sign the Digital Commonwealth legal agreement


Considering your collections:
  • should it be digitized?
  • can it be digitized?
  • may it be digitized?
  • who can host it?
  • what system will be used?
Metadata is necessary to find digital images
With metadata, the cost for the repository is mainly the human cost: labor.
Costs will include administrative costs: those with access to files.
The metadata has to cover all groups.

Metadata Standards:
The user can use XML. Components include: element sets, standards, protocols.
The Digital Commonwealth uses Dublin Core (DC).
DC 15 has common elements. The Digital Commonwealth also uses "OAI-PMH:" Open Archives Initiative Protocol for Metadata Harvesting
It is standard - so computers can talk to each other.

Using the repository: this is the easy part.
  • Obtain the member toolkit.
  • Send sample metadata.
  • Upload the repository!

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