Version Policies and theOpenDOAR Policies Tool
Peter Millington, University of Nottingham
Version Identification Workshop, London, 22-Apr-2008
Outline
• The importance of policies for OA repositories
• OpenDOAR and policies
• The OpenDOAR Policies Tool
• Versions and the Policies Tool
– Forthcoming upgrades
• Implementation challenges & tips
The Importance of Policies
• They state rules– What people can, cannot, or must do– e.g. Permitted re-use of full texts
• They plan for eventualities– What will happen when …. ?– e.g. Take-down in cases of copyright infringement
• They encourage and set standards– Quality of data– Good administrative practice– e.g. Linking between versions of a document
• They make you think
OpenDOAR
• Directory of Open Access Repositories• http://www.opendoar.org/• Lists over 1,100 repositories worldwide• Searching
– By keyword– By categories – e.g. country, software name, etc
• Several display options– Including full records with repositories’ standardised policies
• Tools for administrators & service providers– Including a Policies Tool
OpenDOAR Policies Tool
• Designed to help you to…
• Define your repository’s policies– according to best current practice
• Create a Policies web page– in 5 easy steps
• Add a Policies page to an EPrints.org archive– in 6 easy steps
• Add policies to your EPrints.org OAI-PMH config– also in 6 easy steps
For the full guide, see the link at the end of this presentation
OpenDOARPolicies Tool
FOR DUMMIES® is a registered trademark of Wiley Publishing, Inc.
Policies Tool Outline• Launch Page
– http://opendoar.org/tools/en/policies.php
• Main Page– Assembly area for generated policies– Buttons for adding/editing individual policies– Output and customisation options
• Individual Policy Forms– Existing OAI policy displayed where available– Radio buttons, checkboxes, picklists, pop-up boxes– Minimum options – achieving OA goals but restricted– Optimum options – refinements for more use or better quality
• Output Options– Plain text or HTML source code for the repository’s web– Source code for EPrints static pages and/or configuration file
Output Options
• The Policies Tool web output– Just print out and discuss
• HTML source code– To insert into your own web page
• Plain Text– Copy-and-paste into your own documents
• EPrints.org static ‘Policies’ web page– For EPrints versions 2 & 3
• EPrints.org OAI configuration file source code– To let people harvest your policies via OAI-PMH Identify
Versions and the Policies Tool
• Content Policies– Permissible versions– Version, peer-review and publication statuses
• Preservation Policy: Version control– Policies on changes, errata and corrigenda– Policies on adding new versions of a deposit– Linking older, newer and latest versions– Change detection facilities
• Forthcoming changes to the Tool– Consulting on changes inspired by VERSIONS & VIF– Implementation expected in 2 – 3 weeks
Policy Challenges & Tips
• Be real– Don’t just define a policy. Make sure it actually happens.
• Repository Software Issues– Popular packages probably already accommodate…– Version & Status fields - but do they include dates?– Links between older and newer versions
• but can you only deposit newer versions?
• Is the latest version always the default?
• Provide Clear User Guidance– Versions Toolkit – think of non-native English speakers
• Monitor and check submissions
Any Questions
• OpenDOAR Home Page– http://www.opendoar.org/
• Policies Tool Start Page– http://opendoar.org/tools/en/policies.php
• Policies Tool for Dummies– http://opendoar.org/documents/JISC200706PolicyTool.ppt