'DSpace' installation training workshop
Glasgow, 9-11 September 2003

This workshop provides training and guidance for technical staff of
institutions that are considering implementing a digital repository using
the 'DSpace' software. The workshop, organized jointly by the
DSpace@Cambridge project and ERPANET, will enable participants to develop a
knowledge of, and practical skills in the installation and implementation
of DSpace, which they can then utilise within their own institution.

DSpace
DSpace (http://dspace.org/) is a digital repository system, created as a
joint project between MIT Libraries and the Hewlett-Packard Company, and
publicly released in November 2002 as open-source software.

It manages and distributes digital items, made up of digital files
(or "bitstreams") and allows for the creation, indexing, and searching of
associated metadata to locate and retrieve the items. It is also designed
to support the long-term preservation of the digital material stored in the
repository.

For the user, it enables easy remote access and the ability to search and
read DSpace items from one location: the World Wide Web.

For the contributor, it offers the advantages of digital distribution and
long-term preservation for a variety of formats including text, audio,
video, images, datasets and more. Authors can store their digital works in
collections that are maintained by DSpace "communities" within the parent
institution, and these communities (such as university departments,
laboratories, and research groups) can adapt the system to meet their
individual needs and manage the submission process themselves.

For the institution, it offers the opportunity to provide access to all the
institution's research and teaching materials in digital format through one
interface. The repository is organized to accommodate the varying policy
and workflow issues inherent in a multi-disciplinary environment.
Submission workflow and access policies can be customized to adhere closely
to each community's needs.

The DSpace system is freely available as open-source software from
SourceForge (sourceforge.net/projects/dspace/) under the terms of the BSD
distribution licence. Open-source systems like DSpace are available for
anyone to download and run at any type of institution, organization, or
company (or even just an individual). Users are also allowed to modify
DSpace to meet an organization’s specific needs. The specific terms of use
are described in the BSD distribution licence.

About the Sponsors
The Cambridge-MIT Institute (CMI)
CMI (www.cambridge-mit.org/) is a six-year strategic alliance between
Cambridge University and MIT funded by the UK Government with the remit
to "improve the competitiveness, productivity and entrepreneurship of the
United Kingdom by educating leaders, discovering knowledge and developing
technologies, and creating programs for change using a partnership of MIT
and Cambridge".

DSpace@Cambridge
The DSpace@Cambridge project (www.lib.cam.ac.uk/dspace/) is a three-year
collaboration between Cambridge University Library and MIT Libraries funded
by a CMI grant. The project will enable Cambridge University to contribute
to the development of the DSpace software, and also to assist other UK
universities wishing to implement DSpace. The costs of the training team
for the Glasgow workshop are sponsored by the DSpace@Cambridge project.

ERPANET
The European Commission funded ERPANET project is facilitating this event
(www.erpanet.org). The dominant feature of ERPANET is the provision of a
virtual clearinghouse and knowledge-base on state-of-the-art developments
in digital preservation and the transfer of that expertise among
individuals and institutions. This workshop is part of their regular events
to disseminate knowledge and expertise.

Where
The workshop will take place at the Humanities Advanced Technology and
Information Institute (HATII) at the University of Glasgow
(www.hatii.arts.gla.ac.uk). HATII has donated the use of their state-of-the
art multimedia lab to enable the workshop.

Details of accommodation are available from www.erpanet.org.

Programme
The workshop will begin at midday on 9th September, and finish at lunchtime
11th September. Exact times and locations will be emailed to registered
participants.

The lead trainers will be Richard Rodgers (Systems Manager, DSpace
Federation, MIT, USA) and Tom De Mulder (Systems Manager, DSpace@Cambridge,
Cambridge University, UK).

Costs
The costs associated with the workshop have been kept to a minimum through
the sponsorship of the partners. Participants will be charged £120, which
will cover the cost of two dinners, and lunch (on Wednesday) and coffee
each day.

Registration
Participation in the first instance is reserved for staff at UK
institutions and in particular those from the higher and further education
sectors. As numbers are limited (25 participants only), we would ask those
interested to look carefully at the skill set participants must have if
they are to gain maximum benefit from the workshop before submitting
interest (see below).

In the first instance we can only accept one participant per institution to
maximize the distributed impact of the workshop. On the 21st of August, any
remaining places will be allocated to those who registered an interest from
other European countries and to a possible second attendee from
institutions already participating.

Skills Required
Before registering an interest to participate you should ensure that you
have the following skills.

-Solid, *hands-on* grasp of basic Unix system administration, including
file permissions, users, groups & how to set them. Proficiency with
standard utilities(tar,grep,vi,...) and shell scripts.

-Good understanding of the Web (http, html, ...) and ideally experience
with webservers such as Apache and their basic configuration.

-Familiarity with obtaining and installing software from source bundles:
download, de-archive, build and installation.

-Prior exposure to SQL RDBMS systems, and their basic administration.
-Basic working knowledge of Java, and its build environment.

-Some understanding of Java application servers like Tomcat, and some java
knowledge esp. wrt JSPs

How to Register
For further details of these requirements, and to register interest see
www.erpanet.org. Your registration will be final on payment of the course
fee.

Joy Davidson
ERPANET British Editor
Humanities Advanced Technology and Information Institute (HATII).
George Service House, 11 University Gardens,
University of Glasgow
Glasgow G12 8QJ
Scotland
Tel: +44(0)141 330 8521
Fax: +44(0)141 330 3788
http://www.erpanet.org