Collections as Data Facets document collections as data implementations. An implementation consists of the people, services, practices, technologies, and infrastructure that aim to encourage computational use of cultural heritage collections.
OPENN
Dot Porter, University of Pennsylvania Libraries
1. Why do it
an accessible narrative description that describes why the decision was made to do the work
We believe that users of manuscript data should have access to first-quality images and metadata free of technical or licensing constraints and this is what OPenn provides. First quality means the resolution at which the images were captured, and authoritative metadata in archival formats presented for easy reuse by humans and machines. Everything in OPenn is licensed as a Free Cultural Work.
2. Making the Case
an accessible narrative description that describes how the administrative case was made to do the work
The administrative case for creating datasets from our collection was based entirely on our mission to increase access to our collections. This was a relatively easy case to make. However, there were additional hurdles to overcome.
Penn Libraries has a commitment to Open Data, and the study of manuscripts in a digital age is the central mandate of the Schoenberg Institute for Manuscript Studies (SIMS) which is an integral part of the library and was founded in 2013. Much of the work of SIMS involves the reuse of our own digital manuscript materials, and we knew in 2013 that we could not do our job without a resource like OPenn. So we had to make one. The director of SIMS made the case for OPenn to the Director of Libraries, who made the decision to invest in the creation of OPenn.
3. How you did it
an accessible narrative description that describes how you did it; who was involved - what their roles were; what services were drawn upon; what collections were involved and why were they selected; what infrastructure and technologies were selected and why; what challenges were encountered in the course of the implementation
In 2013 Penn Libraries hired Doug Emery, who had created systems similar to OPenn for other projects, and he conceived the framework. The Penn Libraries did not at that time have a repository, so it was not in a position to host OPenn in an existing system. The Director of SIMS asked the Director of Libraries if we could set it up through Penn Central Computing. We started to populate OPenn with existing medieval manuscript image data; this was a challenge because although most of our manuscripts had already been photographed and cataloged, the master TIFF files were located in scattered hard drives and servers stored in various corners of Penn Libraries. This work was very intensive, and was carried out primarily by Jessie Dummer. We chose the manuscripts because they were central to the mission of SIMS and because the data was good. Doug Emery and Dot Porter designed a package and metadata structure for converting descriptive MARC and structural metadata into a TEI format designed for use and consumption integrating metadata with images.
Once OPenn was populated with Penn Libraries manuscript data we moved on to a second project. This project took advantage of the OPenn platform to gather into one location holdings from many different institutions, based around a common theme - 19th century travel diaries. This project has its own website, but the data served from there is all extracted from OPenn (http://diaries.pacscl.org/). OPenn now is the host for the Bibliotheca Philadelphiensis project, a project to digitize most of the Western medieval manuscripts in Philadelphia which received a $500K grant from CLIR. SIMS’s Curator for Digital Research Services, Dot Porter, is a co-PI on this project.
OPenn was designed to use the simplest and least expensive technologies available for sharing image and metadata. As such, technologically it is nothing more than a webserver with a very large hard drive that runs Apache and exposes the directory listings of its content. The content itself is static, comprising only images, TEI/XML metadata, text manifests, and HTML files. This data is exposed for ease of access and ease of movement via simple, well-established internet protocols: HTTP, anonymous FTP, and Rsync. One challenge that we had during implementation was convincing our service providers that what we wanted was something as simple as OPenn, without a query interface or an Application Programming Interface. Technologically, OPenn is more like an old-style software sharing website from the 1990s than it is a modern web application.
However this approach does have sustainability issues. Penn Libraries is currently designing and building a Samvera repository, and in the future we would like the data in OPenn to be stored in this repository, but served in ways similar to how it is done now. Storing the data in the repository will help with sustainability, and will also provide additional ways to serve the same data (e.g., using IIIF protocols). However we do plan to keep serving the data as friction-free as possible.
4. Share the docs
an assortment of formal documentation (personas, use cases, functional requirements), workflows, and code you have that supports the implementation
We have both a ReadMe and a Technical ReadMe file on the OPenn site:
http://openn.library.upenn.edu/ReadMe.html http://openn.library.upenn.edu/TechnicalReadMe.html
5. Understanding use
discrete discussion of how you approach understanding use (e.g. library use, research use, pedagogical use, creative use, etc.) - discussion of exemplary use is also encouraged
Through OPenn, we provide well-structured standard packages that allow for machine and human reuse without putting any preconditions on how it may be used. We provide the data; users can do whatever they like. We are undoubtedly OPenn’s primary user. We have built online bookreaders (generated with scripts from the TEI/XML files) that stream image files from the OPenn server, and we have also built downloadable epub electronic books (also generated with scripts from the TEI/XML files) that have copies of the manuscript images as part of the book.
6. Who supports use
discrete discussion of the people, services, and programs that support use of the data (e.g. digital scholarship services, instruction services, subject area liaisons, etc.)
ISC (Penn Central Computing) maintains the computer and storage, Jessie Dummer and Diane Biunno carry out the day to day work of managing and adding materials to the OPenn website. Dot Porter provides curatorial advice and oversight (and is also a superuser), and Doug Emery wrote and maintains the software and manages the project.
7. Things people should know
distilled things that people should know if they are thinking about pursuing similar work
We serve digital assets on OPenn that represent physical materials that Penn Libraries doesn’t own. OPenn is seen by us as an outlet for materials
OPenn treats digital assets as originals and seeks to build up a distinctive library of assets whether those originals are housed by Penn Libraries or not. The Open licensing in OPenn allows for easy collaboration with institutions local and international, many of which could not deliver this data in this quantity by themselves. It is a mistake to think that either the licensing or the ease of access to the materials is less important than the other - they are equally important.
8. Whats next
you have something in place. whats next and why?
We are going to move OPenn to the Library’s Samvera repository to ensure preservation standards and long term sustainability and scalability. We will maintain an OPenn interface to this data, but the same data will also be able to be served through other methods including IIIF. We will also be expanding the content of OPenn from mainly medieval manuscripts to printed books and archival material.