Digital Library Presentation MCC 2010

Creating a Digital Library with Open Source Software ( Wordpress )

1. Background
2. Challenges of the Original Materials
o Deterioration
o No index; items were hard to locate
o Low accessibility
3. Primary Goals
o Encourage preservation
o Improve accessibility and visibility
4. Objectives
o Subject headings linking similar articles
o Full-text search capability
o Web-accessible
5. Inspiration
o Beyond Brown Paper
o http://beyondbrownpaper.plymouth.edu
6. WordPress
o Open Source Software
o Blogging Software
7. Why WordPress Works
o Full-text searching
o Broad categories
o Tags
o Web-based
o Dynamic pages built on a database
8.
9. Process Simplified
o Installed WordPress on a remote server
o Purchased a domain name
o Scanned or keyed in the data
o Added each article as separate blog post
o Continued to tweak the template, plugins, etc.
10. Costs
o Open source software = Free
o Web hosting = $10/month
o Domain name costs = $6.00/year
o I have an inexpensive scanner with OCR software (cost $100)
o I used my own computer.

11. Outcomes
o The warrant articles can be found through a full-text search .
o The articles can be browsed by subject, topic, or year.
o The articles are easily accessible online .
 o Hopefully, the materials will be handled less.
12. Learn from My Mistakes
o Plan
o Plan
o Plan
13. Planning a Digital Library
o Create a small sample project
 Digitize no more than 5% of your materials to start with.
 Implement different plug-ins and themes.
 Develop a solid navigation structure with categories and tags.
14. Planning a Digital Library
o Readjust your plan accordingly.
 New versions of WordPress or other open source software will
continue to be developed.
 New features may be added that would enhance your site.
 Be aware of new features in development.
15. Planning a Digital Library
o Consider using your own computer as a host for the sample project.
 Using your own computer, versus a remote server, can save you time
when developing a new project.
16. Planning a Digital Library
o Learn as much as you can about the software before starting your main
project.
 Use the pilot project as a way to learn the software, implement plug-ins
and themes, etc.
17. Planning a Digital Library
o Collaborate closely with other organizations.
 WordPress software can easily be configured to allow for multiple
contributors.
 Work with volunteers from the library or other town organizations, like
the historical society, to help build the site.
18. Think Outside the Box
o Look at the big picture.
o Don’t get caught up with the traditional library-methods of creating a digital
library.
o However you decide to digitize and publish your collection, you will have
increased its accessibility and helped to preserve the materials.
19. Primary Goals Revisited
o Increase the visibility and accessibility of our collections
o Help to preserve physical collections