Digital Library Workbench
"Relax, it's only zeroes and ones!"

News

 Burger, T.N. (2007, January 22). Libraries facilitate open access to information with open source software

 Stencel, M. (2007, January). The Open-Minded Desktop: A Maryland library system shows that it's not just techies and geeks who can learn to love Linux.

 Gasperson, T. (2006, October 4). Library system migrates from Linux -- to more Linux.

Browse By Function

The items in a digital library may be text, images, audio, video, or a combination of all of these. At various phases of the project, different tools and applications may be needed. Browse the collection according to the following topics:

Project Management

Project Management includes planning schedules and budgets, and coordinating the work of a team where each member has been assigned responsibility for different aspects of the project.

• Basecamp
• OpenOffice
• Zoho

Text Manipulation

In keeping with the spirit of open source software, text resources should not be presented to the user in a closed, proprietary format that requires a proprietary application or tool to view. Whenever possible, textual resources should be presented in HTML or PDF format. While PDF is a proprietary format, it is also an open format. There are several tools and services for converting other formats to PDF, and Adobe Reader is free.

• DocMorph
• OpenOffice.org–uses the OpenDocument file format (ODF) as its native file format. Stores all documents in OpenDocument file format by default unless the user requests to store them in a different file format. Can also output in PDF, xml, xhtml, html, rtf, and plain text.
• PrimoPDF
• Zamzar

Image Manipulation

• Dia
• Flickr
• GIMP
• Zamzar

Audio File Manipulation

• Audacity
• MediaMonkey
• RealProducer Basic
• Zamzar

Video File Manipulation 

• Fx MPEG Writer
• RealProducer Basic
• VirtualDub
• Zamzar

Metadata Generators

• DCdot
• Virginia Tech Metadata Generator

Website Development Tools 

• FileZilla–Publish your digital library to the Web
• FreeFind–Add a custom search function to your website
• Free-Php–Add functionality with PHP scripts
• Nvu–WYSIWYG HTML editor
• OpenOffice.org–Can save documents in HTML, XHTML, or XML.
• phpBB–Add a discussion forum to your website
• Your Public Library–Many public libraries have public access computers configured with software that can save documents in HTML. Some proprietary applications that can do this are MS Word and Publisher.

Integrated Digital Library Tools

Several applications have been developed that integrate all of the functions to collect, index, search, browse, host, and display digital libraries.

• Fedora
• Greenstone

Blogs

Discussion Forums

Journals

Books