exposing library content with the niso metasearch xml gateway protocol

Exposing Library Content with the NISO Metasearch XML Gateway ProtocolElizabeth German, Josh Bishoff, William MischoGrainger Engineering LibraryUniversity of Illinois

Electronic Resources & LibrariesFebruary 2, 2010Austin, Texas

Introduction

• Beth, egerman@illinois.edu , @eligerman• Josh, bishoff2@illinois.edu, @josh4lib

• #nisomxg

• Project is funded by:– Institute for Museum and Library Services;– National Science Foundation National Science

Digital Library (NSDL)

Summary

• Problems and solutions• Easy Search• NISO MXG Overview• Examples of our implementation• The future and beyond

Metasearch

• As a solution• Problems still• Easy Search at Illinois

DLF 2008 Fall Forum

Need for malleability• Libraries need to be able integrate their content

into the workflow of their users. • Must promote content to a diverse set of

environments/platforms.– Incorporation into…

• Digital collections• Courseware• OPAC• Class/Research websites• Subject guides• Personal portals

NISO Metasearch XML Gateway

• “low-barrier-to-entry method to expose content to metasearch services and more effectively interoperate with metasearching applications.”

• Based on well-understood and widely adopted information standards: XML, SRU

From NISO Metasearch Initiative, Metasearch XML Gateway Implementers Guide, Version 1.0

The Importance of Middleware

• The Easy Search Web Service:– Parses queries to optimize for each resource– Serves as a knowledge base of disparate vendor IR

functionality– Represents disparate responses coherently– Offers links to the user to the resource at the point

of completed search

Easy Search XML Gateway

• http://search.grainger.uiuc.edu/searchaid3/saresultsug.asp?version=1.1&db=scopus&query=gaas

• Parameter “version” denotes the SRU version• “db” is our in-house database codes• “query” is the string to be searched

XML Response

What you can do with this• Embed custom search interfaces into – Departmental Web Pages– Courseware– “widget” providers• iGoogle, Windows web Gadgets• Google & Windows Sidebar

• Meet library users where they work• Provide real functionality, not just links

Examples

• American History Online (DLF Aquifer)• IMLS Digital Content Creation project– Connecting secondary resources with primary

• NSDL• The Widget Package– Embedding Library resources with courseware,

Google gadgets, university portals, etc.

Website IntegrationNSDLhttp://search.grainger.illinois.edu/searchaid3/proxythruJB.asp?url=http://nsdl.org/search/?

q=clock&verb=Search&s=0&n=10&audience=3

American History Onlinehttp://www.dlfaquifer.org/IMLS DCC

http://imlsdcc.grainger.uiuc.edu/history/

From http://www.dlfaquifer.org

iGoogle, CMS examples

iGooglehttp://www.google.com/ig/directory?url=hades.grainger.uiuc.edu%2Fjosh%2F2010projects%2Fgadgets%2Fhealthsci.x

openCMShttp://cms.library.illinois.edu/cms/liblabs/easy.html

Problems and the Future• NISO MXG– Some vendors releasing APIs– Little standard adoption among vendors

• Easy Search XML– Further integration in services– Promoting to other libraries, departments

Selected source code,Implementation Documents,

Contact Information

• …Forthcoming at presentation.• Josh Bishoff– bishoff2@illinois.edu

• Beth German– egerman@illinois.edu

Additional Reading

• NISO Metasearch Initiative Metasearch XML Gateway Implementers Guide, Version 1.0, http://www.niso.org/publications/rp/RP-2006-02.pdf

• SRU: Search/Retrieval via URL: http://www.loc.gov/standards/sru/

11/18/2009 NSDL Annual Meeting