Omeka

Leslie Barnes, Digital Scholarship Librarian leslie.barnes@utoronto.ca

iSkills WorkshopFebruary 16, 2018

A guided tour of the platform

1. The history and context of the platform2. Creating accounts3. Basic functionalities4. Site management5. Creating items, collections, and exhibits6. Service development

What is Omeka? ● Content Management System (CMS)

● Intuitive interface: easy-to-use

● Plugins enable multiple functionalities

○ Batch uploading

○ Metadata extensions

○ Visualization

● Free, hosted version at omeka.net

Who made Omeka?

● Small libraries and cultural heritage institutions

● Limited IT infrastructure and budgets● Collect and exhibit digital materials

Broad and Active user base

Lots of plugins

Developed by CHNM and other major contributors.

Of particular note (to us at UTL):

● Neatline (Scholars’ Lab)● IIIF Toolkit (UofT)● CSV Import (CHNM)● Exhibit Builder (CHNM)● OAI-PMH (CHNM)

Omeka.net Demonstration1. Overview: User Roles, Settings, Actions

2. Creating a Collection

3. Creating an Item from a file

4. CSV Import

5. Creating an Exhibit in Omeka

6. Adding content to an Exhibit

Make Accounts or Login

CSV file

https://goo.gl/mDAhjQ

Administration: Users● Super

○ Access to EVERYTHING, including security settings

● Admin○ Can edit all items and exhibits, make items public○ No access to settings

● Contributor○ Can create items, but cannot make them public○ Cannot edit other people’s exhibits○ Cannot edit other people’s items

● Researcher○ Can sign in to view private items○ Cannot create or edit items

Administration: Appearance● Choose and configure theme● Edit navigation

○ Potentially really powerful○ Can help guide users and shape experience

● Settings○ Image size○ Pay particular attention to the two bottom buttons

■ Show Empty Elements■ Show Element Set Headings

Items: The Building Blocks Of Exhibits● Aggregation of metadata, files, and tags ● All of these are optional ● Recommend at least minimal metadata● Omeka accepts a lot of file types● SAVE OFTEN

Metadata: Dublin Core (DC)● Developed by OCLC to describe digital resources● Dublin, OH (not Ireland)● 15 “core” elements● Intended to be less medium-specific than other standards (e.g. “Creator” not

“Author”)● How you use metadata in Omeka depends on your use case

Item Types● Gives you greater flexibility with metadata

○ Especially useful if you are focused on creating a catalog

● Allows you to entirely do away with DC● You can create a setting in which DC elements that have nothing in them do

not appear

Creating Collections● Very similar to creating items● DC metadata● Items can only belong to one collection

Environment - UTL’s resources● Have developers ● Have limited designer support● Have some librarian support● Active and engaged users (potential for self-service)

Who our our users? Library staff and Faculty

● Make online exhibits easilyFaculty

● Use software to create collections in the classroom

Service != Platform

Because of the different use cases and some of these limitations we decided to create two services that rely on Omeka:

● One central installation with multiple exhibits for librarians and faculty seeking to create exhibits

● Single, temporary installations for faculty who would be using Omeka in the classroom

Omeka’s Architecture● Doesn’t have multi-sites (one central theme)● Can host multiple exhibits with their own themes● This means we might need to hide some

navigation options (developer time)

Central Installation

Exhibit A

Exhibit D

Exhibit B

Exhibit C

ServicesExhibits UofT

● Complements Collections UofT● Self-service model● Simple UofT theme

Pedagogical

● Year long installations ● Used in classrooms with many

accounts, unique configurations

What questions do we ask?

● User needs and use case(s)● Environmental constraints● Long(er) term: sustainability and scalability● Services can we build● How do platforms shape services?

User Permissions● Crucial to thinking about how to manage installations

○ Who are your users○ How many users do you expect to have on any one installation?○ Do you expect conflicts?○ What are the end results meant to be

Longer-term Considerations

● How many installations/users can we support? How do we coordinate and manage them?

● Can these services grow?● Can we get data in easily? ● Can we get data out in an interoperable format?● Do these services meet user needs?● Do we need to customize the software?

Drawbacks and limitations

● Limited ability to create or alter themes without a developer● Necessary limitations of CMS’s● Not a preservation platform

Benefits

● Active user base and forums● Open source (you can customize if you have developers)● Lots of plugins● Easy to use

Questions and Contact

leslie.barnes@utoronto.ca

Two Cases: Digital Pedagogy ExperimentsCase 1: Undergrads creating individual exhibits

Solution: Each is a contributor

Case 2: Graduate students creating group exhibits

(Imperfect) Solution: Each student has a contributor account, and each group has a communal contributor account

Links to Item

http://content.library.utoronto.ca/omeka-demo/pawson-metadata.txt

http://content.library.utoronto.ca/omeka-demo/pawson.jpg

Creating a Collection

Items in a collection

Adding an Item from a file

Creating an Exhibit

Adding Content to an Exhibit