Main User Guide (draft in progress)

User Guide (draft in progress)

dLibrary platform. Concept and brief user guide (draft in progress)

dLibrary online platform is an experimental construction set for creation of digital archival and library collections, aggregation and online publishing of heterogeneous materials, development of online bibligraphic, research and other databases, virtual exhibitions and web sites. The platform explores idea of web nodes and nesting of content and functionality as a design principle for the online construction set.

1. Web nodes and nesting of content and functionality in modules.

New web node is a blank page with a name and a URL address. It can be compared to a new empty nest in which other children-nodes and modules of content/functionality can be embedded when needed - .

By embedding of content/functionality modules in the nodes , administrator can assemble and configure nodes to be web pages, structured interlinked database records, book reader/audio-video player, a search field, or a combination of these modules.

Examples of nodes with embedded content/functionality modules

Example A. Node with [metadata] module with structured interlinked bibliographic description of a book and a [docview] image browser.

http://elib.shpl.ru/ru/nodes/26

Example B. Front page of defectology scholars online archives - node includes HTML web page, full text search field, index to records and 3 child-nodes/sub-directories for individual collections.

http://elib.so-edinenie.org/en/nodes/1

2. Web pages

Web pages can be added to a node using nodes admin panel:

a). create a new node using the admin menu panel and name it

b). fill in the Template window either in HTML source mode or in WYSIWYG editor.

c). Adjust other node settings, if needed, and click on “Create Node” at the bottom of the page.

3. Structured interlinked database record

dLibrary platform allows creation and fine-tuning of metadata fields for your web project such as bibliographic, archival or any other structured record. Embedded in a node, metadata record links it to other nodes which also contain metadata modules with same terms. Example of node with embedded metadata module:

http://test0.dlibrary.org/en/nodes/49-node-bibliographic-record

The platform automatically “on the fly” creates Index for browsing of records out of the metadata records. The Index can be accessed in the top menu for the site:

http://elib.so-edinenie.org/en/indexes/types/2

Index can be also embedded in a node: