"I want to make a mashup, but I don't know where to start."

Gary Green, Technical Librarian(Surrey County Council)

Why make a mashup?

• Don’t just accept the information that’s presented to you.

• Can I build on it?

(Image: The Library of Congress, Flickr)

What can you do?

• Combine related information

• Provide new services

• Be creative

(Image: The Library of Congress, Flickr)

Where do you start?

• Outside your system

• Inside your system• Set of basic

records

(Image: LSE Library, Flickr)

How can you build on it?

• Look for connections going out

• Look for information / web site/ resources that connect in

(Image: National Archief, Flickr)

What can you do with this data?

• Create RSS feed– Others can access– You can add to your own

sites

• Put it on a map

(Image: George Eastman House, Flickr)

Got an ISBN?

• Link to other book sites– Reviews– More information

(genre/subject)– Study guides– Full text

(Image: Smithsonian Institution, Flickr)

Got an author?

• Link to– Author reviews– Author profiles– Author videos– Author interviews– Author photos

(Image: Smithsonian Institution, Flickr)

Got a subject/genre?

• Link to– Other items with same

subject/genre– Other sites covering that

subject/genre area

(Image: Powerhouse Museum collection, Flickr)

Got any text?

• Pull out keywords with clever software

• Link out using those keywords

(Image: Tagxedo.com)

For example

• English literature curriculum novels• Link to your catalogue– ISBN, Author, Title

• Link to study guides (bookrags.com?)– ISBN, Author, Title

• Link to film adaptations (imdb.com; your catalogue)– Author, Title

(Image: The National Archives UK, Flickr)

For example

• Popular author list• Link to author profile site

(fantasticfiction.co.uk)– By author– Pull out info inc. location

• Get picture from Flickr– Use name

• Put it on a map– Location

(Image: State Library of New South Wales Collection, Flickr)

For example

• Amazon bestseller feed• Feed into your

catalogue– ISBN, Author, Title

• Provide RSS feed for your customers

• Stock purchase alert

(Image: Cornell University Library, Flickr)

For example

• List of academic courses• List of books• Both contain subjects• List of books you’ve

borrowed• Link all together to show

academic courses that might be of interest to you

(Image: Cornell University Library, Flickr)

For example

• Olympic sports books on catalogue

• Link to local sports clubs– Subject

• Link to relevant part of Olympic site– Subject

• Map info according to where events are held in UK

(Image: LSE Library, Flickr)

A quote from a satisfied customer

• “I was a lonely catalogue record & I spent most of my time sitting idly in a library database. But since I’ve been involved in data mashups it has given me a whole new lease of life & people think I’m so much more interesting.”

(0872871347, A 33 year old hardback)

Thank you

Gary Green (Surrey Libraries)