Library Mashups for the Virtual Campus: Using Web 2.0 Tools to Create a New Current Awareness Service Linda Absher, Adriene Lim and Kerry Wu Portland State University – ACRL 2007
Dec 13, 2015
Library Mashups for the Virtual Campus:
Using Web 2.0 Tools to Create a New Current Awareness Service
Linda Absher, Adriene Lim and Kerry WuPortland State University – ACRL 2007
History/Overview• Inspired by Web 2.0 functionality
• Automated• Customizable• Modular
• “MyPortlandState”: Campus Portal– Desire to integrate library/selected
web resources and content within the campus portal
Mashups
Definition: New Web applications or sites created through the combination and re-use of data and/or functionality from two or more disparate and usually third-party Web sources
(Wikipedia, Jan. 2007)
Current Awareness Services (CAS): The Library Literature
Definition: “system…for reviewing newly available documents, selecting relevant items…and recording them so that notifications may be sent...” (Kemp, 1999)
CAS: The Library Literature
• Historically paper-based and labor-intensive• Online Services
• Alerts mostly available via e-mail or electronic lists
• World Wide Web: some news/content pushed via RSS feeds or blogs• Still library specific (i.e., via library Web
site)• Not customizable
Topic Watch: The CAS Mashup
• Building Blocks: RSS feeds and more • Chosen Subject Areas
• Business• Film Studies
• What’s Different?• Not intended to be used solely within a
library context• Planned from the beginning to be
integrated within MyPortlandState Portal
Topic Watch: Technical Overview • Presentation framework using HTML,
JavaScript, Asynchronous JavaScript and XML (AJAX), and Cascading Style Sheets (CSS)
• RSS feeds polled and displayed, grouped by type (news, podcasts, etc.)
• New titles gleaned and cached via “screen scraping” from canned reports
Technical Overview (cont’d)
• PHP scripts used for retrieving, caching, and parsing of data
• Data stored in mySQL database• Mouseover balloons using AJAX• Central Search XML-based API• OpenURL links offered • Other APIs being considered
Close-up view of the podcasts/videocasts channel with “play” buttons
Challenges
• Customization and personalization not yet possible
• Lack of filtering of keywords • Few licensed databases offering RSS
feeds• Copyright concerns – Example:
YouTube, holding off on using this API • Non-Romanized characters
Initial Reactions to Pilot Project
• Initial comments very positive• Faculty admitted they had little time to
subscribe to feeds • Many had never encountered RSS feeds
before the CAS • Subject area of “Business Research” too
broad for at least one respondent
Future Enhancements and Ideas
• More customization – User-submitted RSS feeds for adds and deletions
• Identifying and pulling in more Webinars and videocasts if possible
• Sharing of OPML file for users • Flag already read items• Possibly share framework and scripts
Next Steps
• More topics covered - Work with subject librarians and faculty
• More marketing– Introduce tool into Library instruction
sessions • More integration
– Integrate tool with Research Guides and Learning Management Systems, (i.e., Sakai, WebCT)
Thank you – Questions?
• Linda Absher – [email protected]• Adriene Lim – [email protected] • Kerry Wu – [email protected]