A Quick Start Guide to create Open Scholarly Communities on the Web

Michele Barbera, Matteo D’Alfonso,

Francesca Di Donato

Quick Start Guide To create digital scholarly communities on the webCOST Action A32

Michele Barbera, Matteo D’Alfonso, Francesca Di Donato

Target

• Scholars who are not digitally literate

• Small and local digitisation projects who want to grow

• Not you!


What is not• not a guide to edit content (e.g. transcription and image

manipulation). Publishing only.

• not exhaustive, not in-depth (quick)

• not “finished”, we need your help

• not general purpose (based on our experience and on our software)

• not a book (yet), it’s a work in progress


Why?

• let scholars start their digitisation & dig.edition projects

• quickly

• no frills

• on a *very* limited budget


How?• by exchanging experiences and knowledge (content,

legal, policies)

• by exchanging OSS software. Stop re-coding (and re paying) everything from scratch for every project

• by letting private companies and professionals offer their services (digitisation, software customisations, legal consulting)

• by applying for funding together


Workflow• we published a skeleton on a web site

• along with a forum in which you can post your contributions, suggestions, modifications, additions

• we will also advertise services offered by professionals and companies in the web site

• the website itself is independent from COST A32

• the guide will become an official COST A32 publication (on paper and on the web) when it’s more complete


Organization

• content

• legal & policies

• tech

Three parts on:

Three editors who:• wrote a skeleton

• run the website

• incorporate your contributions


Draft website

http://qsg.barbz.orgIts just “parked” there. Will be moved to

another domain soon.


We need your help

ForumPost your modification, corrections, ideas

on the forum!

Matteo D’Alfonso University of Bologna (Italy)

[email protected] This work is released under a CC licence

Corpus & community

An Introduction to the Quick Start Guide Section 1

mailto:[email protected]

Matteo D’Alfonso - [email protected]

Title of content: choose your corpus An Introduction to the Quick Start Guide - Section 1

Choose your corpus

• By corpus we mean a given set of items relevant for your community, such as works or handwritten documents of a writer, philosopher, poet etc., as well as books or articles written on her work, her life etc..

• Most of the communities using Talia focus on literary remains containing handwritten documents.



Title of technical: digitising your sources An Introduction to the Quick Start Guide - Section 2

Do you need images of your corpus?

• Contact the owner, e. g. archive, museum, foundation etc. • Contact the owner or a private company to digitalise the

corpus. • Schopenhauersource worked well with the following

company: Mikro Universe GmBH.




Do you need images of your corpus?

• The names you will choose should become suffixes of the URL of your website and so contribute to set the URLs for each single pages showing the contents

• These names will then be useful for both citing the sources of your research and navigating through them in the website.

• http://www.schopenhauersource.org/NL-I,1r is the URL for the first page (1r) of the first book (NL-I) of Schopenhauer's handwritings.


http://www.schopenhauersource.org/NL-I,1r%2522%2520%255Ct%2520%2522_blank



Characteristics of the names

• Since they will be part of an URL these names will have to be compatible with requirements of the Web (see: Stability of the URL). Only use characters that are compatible with the syntax of an URL.

• Since they will be cited by scholars, who already have standards for citing primary and secondary sources for their studies, the naming schema should be compatible with this scholarly tradition. http://qsg.barbz.org


http://qsg.barbz.org/



Publishing the naming schema

• Since you have established your naming schema you have to publish it as a separate contribution and also document the classification criteria you followed for generating it.

• In order to ensure the maximal interoperability between your platform, other editions of your corpus and the secondary literature, publish a table of concordances with other existing classifications.




Involve your community• Activate an electronic, open access publishing system. • Ask your colleagues to contribute to the classification, the

production of editions, other scholarly contributions etc. • Create an editorial board. • Establish the rules for accepting contributions. • Establish the kind of contributions you will accept. • Establish the format of the contributions. • Establish the editorial rules. • Select a model licence to rule the relations between your platform

and the authors. • The names of peer-reviewers, rules and criteria, licence you've

chosen have to be explicitly listed and published on an web page containing the documentation of your platform.


Michele Barbera Netseven (Italy)

[email protected] This work is released under a CC Attribution Share Alike 3.0

Unported License

section 2: technology





Michele Barbera - [email protected]


Summary

• Intro

• Digitising your sources

• Preparing your digital objects for publication

• Setting up your infrastructure

• Publishing your content




IntroductionTypes of content

• As of today the infrastructure is ready to publish:

• Images

• Videos

• XML texts

• In this first version of the guide we focus only on images




Digitising your sources

Two alternatives Long term preservation This is the best option, but it is more expensive.

For the web Set of minimum requirements. Two options: in house or subcontracted.




Digitising for the webIn house

• If you do it carefully you can get acceptable results

Subcontracting

• requirements for format, resolution, color depth

• we would like to have a list of service providers, prices




Preparing DOs• Register a domain

• Define a naming scheme (identifiers)

• No backend, three options:

• spreadsheet or OODB

• dedicated software: pinakes3?, fabrica?

• export to XML




Setting up the platform

• computing service of the institution

• partner library

• commercial hosting

Finding a host




Talia

• a framework, a set of programming libraries to help programmers

• but there are “customizations”: user interface + data model (ontology)

• the discovery customization is ready to use

What is it?

How?• Everything is Open Source

• do it yourself

• subcontract to a professional, list




Discovery customization

• Facsimile (IIP)

• XML editions

• CMS and Exist based search engine are external apps

• OAI-PMH

Features




Generic Talia 1.0

• Load your own ontology

• New UI, completely customizable

• Integration with external tools: Juxta, Opencalais

• Alternative search engine

• Integration with backend application?

• Full integration with philospace

November 2009, features:




Links

• Source code:

• http://github.com/net7/talia/tree/master

• Docs:

• http://www.talia.discovery-project.eu/

• Installation:

• http://trac.talia.discovery-project.eu/wiki/TaliaInstallation

Talia repository and docs


http://github.com/net7/talia/tree/master

http://github.com/net7/talia/tree/master

http://trac.talia.discovery-project.eu/wiki/TaliaInstallation



How to contribute• Write guides and tutorials on the modifications you have made

• Send us your UI templates

• Invite us to conferences and workshops

• send your patches and modification

• suggest new features, ideas and requirements

• help us to get funding by involving us in project proposals




Thank you!http://qsg.barbz.org


Francesca Di Donato University of Pisa (Italy)

[email protected] This work is released under a Creative Commons Attribution-

Share Alike 3.0 Unported License

Legal, Economic and Social Framework





Francesca Di Donato - [email protected]

Legal, Economic and Social Framework An Introduction to the Quick Start Guide - Section 3

Topic of my speech

• The Legal framework

• The Economic framework

• The Social framework

QSG Section 3:




1. The Legal framework. Know your rights




What is copyright?

Copyright means that an owner’s right to an original work of literature, music and art is legally protected.

In practice..

• it gives the owner exclusive rights to how his/her work is used, i.e. to do or to authorize copying and public distribution or performance of any kind.

• its duration depends on when and where the work




© in * Source communitiesThe system of copyright which acts in the creation and maintenance of an Open Scholarly Community on the Web entails different objects:

• primary sources (manuscripts, their digitization - i.e. images);

• secondary sources (editions, articles, books and essays as well as the project web sites contents).




Primary/ secondary sources: to be or not to be?

But “primary sources” and “secondary source” are not legal definitions.

Copyright law only outlines:

● what is a protected work ● what is a work in the public domain ● what is a derivative work ● whether there are other copyright-related rights on a work

Legally speaking, the relevant distinction is that between original works and derivative works.




Original worksCopyright on original works lasts in general 70 years after the death of the author.

After that date, that work is in the public domain, i.e. monetary rights on that work expired.

Practically, this means that we can use it freely (without paying any fee nor asking authorization).

Although each EU state member has its own copyright system, common guidelines are described in several EU Directives (See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Copyright_law_of_the_European_Union).




Table: Copyright in European legislationsSee: http://www.eucopyright.org/2008/04/copyright_eu_list/


http://www.eucopyright.org/2008/04/copyright_eu_list/



Table: Copyright in European legislationsSee: http://www.eucopyright.org/2008/04/copyright_eu_list/


http://www.eucopyright.org/2008/04/copyright_eu_list/



Derivative works

A derivative work is protected autonomously.

Examples: an adaptation, an arrangement, a transcription, a new version, a translation, etc, of a previous work.

The fact that a work is in the Public Domain does not mean that also the version or translation that you are interested in is freely available.

Critical and scientific publications are publications of Public Domain works with a critical or scientific reconstruction, or organization of the work, or description.




a) Manuscripts

Manuscripts are original works.

If you intend to embark upon a digitization project, you need to be aware that you must investigate the copyright situation involved for each item that you intend to scan.

We have several good experiences (see NietzscheSource and SchopenhauerSource) which prove that it is possible to obtain the right to digitize the manuscripts.

For help, contact our existing communities.




b) Facsimiles

Digitization means that collections and holdings can be given wider access.

Therefore, you must consider and decide about the legal conditions for making digital copies.

We recommend that access to the digital collection is reliant upon acknowledgement of a copyright disclaimer.

Provide copyright information about your facsimiles on your web site.




c) EditionsEditions are derivative works.

In Europe, copyright on editions is regulated by art. 5 of the Term Directive (Council Directive 93/98/EEC of 29 October 1993).

Art. 5 Critical and scientific publications “Member States may protect critical and scientific publications of works which have come into the public domain. The maximum term of protection of such rights shall be 30 years from the time when the publication was first lawfully published”.




The Term DirectiveBut the Term directive: ● Is not mandatory;

● Does not define the modalities of the right;

● Does not define what is a critical or scientific publication;

● Permits the introduction of other related rights to copyright.




examples1) Italy (art. 85 quater LDA ): 20 years “1. Senza pregiudizio dei diritti morali dell'autore, a colui il quale pubblica, in qualunque modo o con qualsiasi

mezzo, edizioni critiche e scientifiche di opere di pubblico dominio spettano i diritti esclusivi di utilizzazione

economica dell'opera, quale risulta dall'attività di revisione critica e scientifica [...] 2. La durata dei diritti

esclusivi di cui al comma 1 è di 20 anni a partire dalla prima lecita pubblicazione, in qualunque modo o con

qualsiasi mezzo effettuata”.

2) Germany (art. 70 UrhG ): 25 years “1. Editions which consist of non-copyrighted works or texts shall enjoy, mutatis mutandis, the protection

afforded by the provisions of Part I if they represent the result of scientific analysis and differ in a significant

manner from previously known editions of the works or texts.

(3) The right shall expire 25 years after publication of the edition; however, it shall expire 25 years after its

production if the edition is not published within that time limit. The time limit shall be calculated in accordance

with Article 69.”




examples3) Poland (art. 99 PCL ): 30 years “The person who after expiry of the term of protection of the copyright to the work prepares a critical or scientific

publication thereof, which is not a work, shall have the exclusive right to dispose of and use such publication

within the scope specified in Article 50, subparagraphs 1 and 2, for 30 years after the date of publication”.

4) UK (art. 15 CDPA ): 25 years “Duration of copyright in typographical arrangement of published editions Copyright in the typographical

arrangement of a published edition expires at the end of the period of 25 years from the end of the calendar

year in which the edition was first published”.

..........

..........




Important note

We strongly encourage our Action members to adopt an Open Access policy

1. self-archiving their results in OA institutional and disciplinary archives,

2. publishing them in OA journals (see sect. 3.1.e - f)

3. and adopting copyleft licenses (such us Creative Commons), which help to increase the dissemination of scholarly works and their reuse.




2. Finances. Preliminary budget




Build your team - Structure your expertise

Creating a team with a range of skills:

1. The authoring and content management for the Website 2. Systems administration functions

3. Website management

4. Graphic design skills




Knowledge on the Web languages

General computer literacy, and a working knowledge of HTML (Hypertext Markup Language) and XML (Extensible Markup Language) are required for Website development work.

The importance of HTML for librarians and archivists, and increasingly of XML, is growing rapidly.

The acquisition of these skills is one of the goals of the Training school which will be organized by WG3.




Estimate your project Costs The cost estimate can be divided into operational, organizational and staffing costs.

Operational costs include Materials, Equipment, Travelling expenses and Services.

Two specific questions:

1) Do you need to digitize manuscripts and/or texts?

2) Software. Do you have someone who can do the installation? http://trac.talia.discovery-project.eu/wiki/TaliaInstallation. If you need help and assistance, please contact us.


http://trac.talia.discovery-project.eu/wiki/TaliaInstallation



Estimate your project Costs

Organizational costs for setting-up your *Source community project can include:

1) Management 2) Administration 3) Organizational development 4) Overheads

Cost for Staff. Include in your project an estimate of what staff need to be involved, such as:

1) Full-time staff 2) Part-time staff 3) Contract staff 4) Consultants




Publishing costs

Adopt an Open Access model

Your publishing and dissemination costs can be contained by adopting an Open Access policy.

To learn more about this possibility, please contact us.




3. Social Framework. Dissemination




Build your own community

How is an Open Scholarly Community on the Web organized?

Firstly, it makes use of web-based tools to communicate, i.e. to archive, spread and certify data and results.

So, a useful starting point is for staff to visit sites of similar projects to see what features work well and what tools are most useful for scholars.




Build your own communitySecondly, it needs specific technological and legal expertises. Open scholarly communities on the Web are by definition interdisciplinary. In addition to scientific skills, they require expertise in:

1. website management; 2. rights management; 3. project management; 4. purely scholars.

People who have skills in more than one of these fields will be appreciated.




Todo list 1. Look for European research teams

on your corpusIt is very important for your community to promote networking with other related scholarly communities.

As in traditional communities, on the Web a high degree of scientific discussion and connections will improve the quality of your results.

The goal to create connections between scholars of EU countries is one of the main objectives of COST program. Our Action promotes this goal by organizing workshops and meetings, and through STSMs.




Todo list 2. Contact similar sites

The Web is a small world. Increasing relevant connections will make it easy for others interested in your corpus or subject to find you. Contacting similar sites will also your improve your chances of creating new projects and cooperations in Europe and abroad.

To find out about similar projects don’t restrict yourself to Google. Ask colleagues (by email or at conferences), look on usenet discussion groups, use local search engines, ecc.

Make sure you update and enrich your web site: it's the best way to become more visible on the Web.




Todo list 3. Link your website from:

a. your personal homepage/blog

b. your institution website

c. your library website

d. wikipedia

e. open access archives directories and DOAJ directory




ConclusionsThe Guick Start Guide alpha is available here:

http://qsg.barbz.org/

We still need to:

1. enrich this Guide

2. build new communities

3. strenghten our connections with existing communities

We need your help

Thank you


http://qsg.barbz.org

Internet

A Quick Start Guide to create Open Scholarly Communities on the Web