Press Release: Infrae extends Python, Zope, Silva, and Railroad with OAI-PMH facilities

OAI Pack: a full stack of Open Archives services

October 14, 2004 – Infrae is pleased to release extensions for Python, 
Zope and the Silva CMS for harvesting web-based repositories exposed 
using the OAI-PMH standard (Open Archives Initiative Protocol for 
Metadata Harvesting). In addition we are announcing an extension for the 
Railroad content repository software for exposing existing Railroad 
systems as OAI-PMH harvestable repositories. The individual components 
enable organizations to harvest, index and present data from any OAI-PMH 
repository, and also allow the setting up of a new repository with Railroad.

The Open Archives Initiative Protocol for Metadata Harvesting is a 
well-established standard in the content management and library science 
worlds gaining in importance. It provides an application-independent 
interoperability framework for metadata exchange between online parties. 
Many academic libraries and other organizations expose OAI-PMH compliant 
repositories to the web that can be harvested. The OAI-PMH standard 
defines the following parties and software components:

     * A ‘Data Provider’ such as an academic library runs a Repository 
that supports OAI-PMH as a means of exposing metadata information about 
resources, for instance academic publications.
     * A ‘Service Provider’ uses Harvester software to harvest metadata 
from such Repositories. The harvested metadata can be used to provide 
valued-added services, such as a website that allows browsing and 
searching through a catalog.

Infrae has extended Silva so it enables users to browse and search 
harvested metadata, further enriching the extensive feature set of this 
open source CMS. An organization that uses Silva can easily become an 
OAI-PMH Service Provider.

In the process, Infrae also developed a module for accessing OAI-PMH 
compliant repositories in Python, and developed a sophisticated 
harvesting and indexing system for using harvested metadata in Zope. 
These reusable components are designed to be building blocks for other 
Python or Zope-based applications.

Infrae has also extended Railroad with a service to turn it into an 
OAI-PMH compliant server. Railroad is a standards-based content 
repository for digital media and corresponding metadata. It’s designed 
to be easy to integrate with content management systems and other client 
software, and has already been integrated with Silva and Plone. By using 
Railroad, an organization can easily become an OAI-PMH Data Provider.

Infrae calls this full stack of OAI-PMH services the OAI-PMH Pack. It is 
possible to use a combination of Silva and Railroad to become both 
Service Provider and Data Provider, but since the OAI Pack builds on an 
interoperable protocol, the components can also be used individually.

More information on the OAI-PMH Pack:
     http://www.infrae.com/products/oaipack
Python oaipmh module:
     http://www.infrae.com/products/oaipack#oaimph
Zope OAICore Product:
     http://www.infrae.com/products/oaipack#OAICore
Silva OAI Extension:
     http://www.infrae.com/products/oaipack#SilvaOAI
Railroad OAI Service:
     http://www.infrae.com/products/oaipack#RailroadOAIService
More information about OAI-PMH:
     http://www.openarchives.org/
     http://www.oaforum.org/tutorial/