Info Grid 2005 - Tuesday 27th, 11:00 - The DARE architecture and SOA-developments in the Netherlands

11:00
The DARE architecture and SOA-developments in the Netherlands
Martin Feijen, SURF

Outline
* SOA in higher education
* DARE technical architecture
* DARE organization
* conclusions and questions

help libraries to make the changes needed to support scientists in their work

SOA in higher education

- SURFnet (people over 18) is planning to use SOA in the very near future
- awareness of performance issues: protocol overhead may slow down inter-application response
- SURFnet Video Portal and DARE harvester are the first SOA implementations within SURFnet

SURFnet is making the case to their management to do SOA, but the management says "what is the business case"

Kennisnet (Knowledge net) - people under 18

- implicit SOA policy: focus on re-use of applications
- SOAP/XML interface between local web apps and central portal
* architecture is SOA based but
- to avoid performance, constraints are necessary
- use only when applicable, not blindfolded

SURF
- Task force group "Information Architecture in Higher Education" April 2005.
  No specific recommendations about using SOA.
- Report of the Scientific Council of SURF 2007-2010

  Advice: use SOA as architectural framework for the further development of the technical infrastructure.

DARE architecture

- building a network of institutional repositories in the Netherlands
- uses OAI-PMH
- DARE is successful but we have a need for optimization

[diagram of DARE as is]

Limitations
- app interface between local repository and other tools (e.g. Metis system)
  = organizational issue
- no consensus persistent identifiers
- no solution for complex documents
- no unique identifier for personal names
- metadata quality issues
- sets and/or filters

Planned work on Technical Optimization

* content spider and filter (want to include datasets and not only publications)
* Digital Author Identifier (each scientist in the Netherlands will be assigned a number) - will integrate with OCLC/Pikas
* pilot for e-theses using DIDL and extended OAI
* persistent identifier

LOREnet project

* demonstration project to create 15 operational learning object repositories, building on DARE architecture
* OAI-PMH, LOM and IMS-CP as standards

[diagram of Lorenet]

DARE organization

* Libraries need to change
* We want scientists to use repositories, but we don't speak their language
(Approach has been inside out - from library to scientist.  Need to change to outside in.)

[diagram of organization, showing missing links between faculty and library]

DARE approach

* http://www.creamofscience.org/
* library self-evaluation and summer school for libraries
* embedding DARE in library workflow
* get closer to faculty and students
* not perfect but "good enough": light weight, flexible and little steps (SOA might be very handy to support this)
* need to do architecture AND manage change
* facilitate and encourage

DARE-II (2007-2010)

* Primary goal: repository as a tool for research and learning
* collect, store, describe, disseminate and secure all digital objects that are relevant for scientific communication
* So: not only end products like PDFs or articles but also datafiles, models, learning materials etc.

Conclusions

* SOA is known mainly in the ICT community
* SURF, SURFnet and Kennisnet will use SOA (prudently)
* DARE will migrate to DIDL and extended OAI infrastrcuture
* DARE will facilitate libraries in their change process and to go beyond publications

http://www.surf.nl/

Q: why DIDL?
A: have been talking about compound docs for about 2 years, had meeting to look at solutions...
decision was DIDL

Q: if you have persistent identifiers, won't you need a resolution service - one exists - ??Swedish steff program???

[more questions]