New Job, New Program

I just started working this week as the student Drupal web tech, helping UA faculty with their Drupal websites through The Office of Instruction and Assessment. (I'm experienced in some web dev but new at Drupal, learning fast thanks to tutorials and now this class.) I really like Drupal because it lets users be responsible for so much on their own sites. I also like that I can do advanced web development that I never mastered the code/coding languages for.

On the other hand, as a site administrator I will sometimes want to work in code. I am working on Views right now for one site and it is a little frustrating to try to figure out why my displays show up with no records in them. When I'm looking at a block of code I can eventually see what's missing. But with Drupal's GUI there are so many different screens and menus that pop up and disappear, it can be hard to troubleshoot. (I'm going to be going through http://drupal.org/node/272912, working on Views in code, next time I'm on the clock.)

If we were already working on Views in IRLS 675 I would probably ask for more specific advice in the forum, though since these are live sites belonging to UA folks I guess I'd be careful not to reveal too much, for both security purposes and because word gets around in small communities. Nonetheless, I may be asking for the 675 forum's assistance sometimes. And I'll be sharing some of our class resources on our webdev blog, http://blog.ltc.arizona.edu/productionservices/2010/09/drupal-taxonomy-plus-smooth-ja.html.

CMS: Costs More Skronk

I just finished reading the following article: "Building a local CMS at Kent State", by Rick Wiggins, Jeph Remley, and Tom Klingler, of Libraries & Media Services, Kent State University. To summarize, the Kent State University Library website, made mostly of static html pages built in Dreamweaver, was looking and functioning worse and worse due to inconsistencies created in the collaborative environment in which it was being created. The project was undertaken to create a website for the library that more effectively met the needs of the library's staff and users, including metadata creation and more effective database functionality. A variety of Content Management Systems were researched by the project team, who determined that none of the CMS's they examined was the right fit. The project then became the writing of a local Content Management System, with the team for this new project given the tight deadline of fourteen months to accomplish the task. The new CMS was developed using the input of focus groups, then implemented with the training of staff. The layout of the site, including the content creator interface, and the tools for the varying levels of management, have been laid out in the article. The CMS and resulting site have been pronounced successful.

Of all the articles about CMS's in Library Hi Tech's 2006 issue, which focused entirely on these systems, I was interested in this one because I have just begun working with Drupal, and I was curious what needs the Kent State Library had that Drupal could not meet. It seems the main areas of unmet need, in the original project researchers' 2006 estimation, centered on metadata. First, they wanted metadata to form a basis for the site. The resulting CMS uses metadata to organize the pages, and allows metadata search, as opposed to keyword search. Another need not met by Drupal or the other existing CMS's was to have the site send an email when a new resource was added that would alert library staff to play their respective roles in metadata creation. This was also ultimately accomplished by the new CMS and site.

The site in question, http://www.library.kent.edu if I'm not outdated, is indeed smooth and professional. It feels like there is more content and more streamlined function than many of the Drupal sites I've seen. But I wonder if project 1 would have turned into project 2 in, say, 2009? Not likely. For one thing, the metadata tools they required may have been added to one of the Open Source CMS's by then. Plus, days grew dark. As in:

Question: "Should we initiate project costing many thousands of dollars, or just create a module for Drupal or another pre-existing CMS?"

Answer: "Well, considering we just cut all of our part time staff...".

But this article is a valuable resource, a map of a road less traveled, successfully illuminated. So libraries, mark the metadata below. When the recession is over, you'll know where your roadmap is!

Article Type:

Technical paper
Keyword(s):

Content management; Information management; Libraries.
Journal:

Library Hi Tech
Volume:

24
Number:

1
Year:

2006
pp:

69-101
Copyright ©

Emerald Group Publishing Limited
ISSN:

0737-8831

Puppet Library

I've decided to start a digital puppet library, of images, sound files, scripts and other artifacts related to puppetry. (Not digital puppets; digital artifacts of real puppets and performances.) I have access to a small collection already and it is definitely of interest to a limited and weird but passionate community of puppeteers and puppet appreciators. I am currently trying to see if there is anything similar out there, and I will likely use performance, art and sculpture collection sites as guides in developing the taxonomy of puppetlibrary.org, as it will be called and located.

There are 229 records returned in response to a search for puppet in ARTstor at http://library.artstor.org. Here is one ARTstor puppet record:



Information:

Culture	Javanese
Title	Shadow Puppet representing the Giant Kumbakarna
Work Type	puppet
Date	19th century
Measurements	66 cm high
Description	from Java, Indonesia
Repository	British Museum, London, United Kingdom
ARTstor Collection	Art, Archaeology and Architecture (Erich Lessing Culture and Fine Arts Archives)
ID Number	03-07-02/70
Source	Image and original data provided by Erich Lessing Culture and Fine Arts Archives/ART RESOURCE, N.Y. http://www.artres.com/c/htm/Home.aspx http://www.artres.com/c/htm/TreePfLight.aspx?ID=LES
Rights	Photo Credit: Erich Lessing/ART RESOURCE, N.Y. Please note that if this image is under copyright, you may need to contact one or more copyright owners for any use that is not permitted under the ARTstor Terms and Conditions of Use or not otherwise permitted by law. While ARTstor tries to update contact information, it cannot guarantee that such information is always accurate. Determining whether those permissions are necessary, and obtaining such permissions, is your sole responsibility.

File Properties:

Image Id	LESSING_ART_10311440311
Download Size	1024,1024
Collection	ARTstor Collections
Accessibility	Public
Format	fpx
File Name	lessing_03070270.fpx
Width	5046
Height	6000
Image URL	http://library.artstor.org.ezproxy2.library.arizona.edu/library/secure/ViewImages?id=%2FThWdC8hIywtPygxFTx5RnksX30of10%3D&userId=gzdMejE%3D&zoomparams=

There are also puppet collections, like the Center for Puppetry Arts:
http://www.puppet.org/museum/VeWebsite/exhibit3/vexmain3.htm . Their taxonomy will certainly influence my collection metadata.

Many questions remain. I will limit the collection initially to what I have, but what I have includes modern puppets from puppet artists who are not well known. If I want to grow this collection, I will have to limit it more clearly.

Project Management, in case your manager didn't tell you...

Project Management is very complex! Let's simplify.

What is a project?
A project is an effort with some kind of measurable result, an effort that is definitely going to end.

What are the stages of a project?
These 4 stage are also known as the project "life cycle":

1. Initiation - defining objectives, critical factors, and success
2. Planning - breaking it down into tasks
3. Execution - carrying out the plan
4. Closure - completion and review

What is a program?
A program is a group of related projects. A program will only end if all of its projects are over.

What is an organization?
An organization is a group of people and resources employed together with the same objectives. An organization is not definitely going to end. However, an organization may employ people specifically for projects or programs. These people should know that their jobs may end when their main projects or programs end, even if the results of the project live on.

What is Project Management?
Most simply, Project Management (PM) is the use of models to manage the scope, time, and budget of a project.

What are the parts of Project Management?

There are 9 Knowledge Areas of PM and 5 types of processes in PM, often laid out this way:

	Initiating	Planning	Executing	Monitoring and Controlling	Closing
Integration
Scope
Time
Cost
Quality
Human Resources
Communications
Risk
Procurement

Why use PM?
Here are some of the risks if we don't use PM:

• "Scope creep" is adding new objectives as you go along, and it can seriously blur the original objectives.
• A lack of common understanding among team members always keeps them from performing well.
• Projects that take a while (and most of them do!) run out of steam if all involved don't know what stage it is in.
• Running out of money is such a drag!
• When there's trouble there's panic UNLESS the possibility of that trouble and a solution to it were addressed in the plan.

Do I really need to know all this?
This entire list is not something all staff members of every organization involved in projects need to know. However, the project manager should be sure that all staff members have a general idea of their roles in both the project and the organization.

Where can I find more information?
Look at http://pmi.org for more information, or if you're involved in a project, ask your project manager for a breakdown.

Technology, grade school style

At the beginning of this course it was difficult to know what we were learning the command line interface for, and it didn't really sink in until the last few units, when PHP and MySql were introduced. This I suppose is because I have a hard time reckoning with information until it is somewhat organized already, in databases. Then it is easier to say, This should be accessible to users and this should not; this is something that will be requested frequently, while this is a good area to let users structure their own commands.

My perspective on digital information at this point is a little frightened at the hugeness of that sphere. What I am wishing for is a poster of commands and examples for the command line, the sql monitor, of php and html code. A huge poster. Working in this field you of course become familiar enough with using these programs to get these things down.

Keeping it brief; have to work on that poster!

SQL is SoQooL

SQL is one of my favorite parts of this class so far, because the most difficult aspect of using a virtual machine has been struggling with how it is organized. I didn't make the directories and in order to see what is where I need to remember commands. But with MySQL I am organizing things myself, and when I query and recognize results returned to me I feel good. Powerful. Organized.

The conceptual organization of databases is the part I get stuck on sometimes, but as this is what I hope to do with my life, at least in part, I'm workin' on it!

SQL N ERD R Q!

(Q is my husband's textese for Cool)

Why is it that when I'm not in computer class I feel like such a geek for over-organizing every little object and interaction? Yet when I study database design I feel incredibly outgeeked?

In any case, I've adopted a tentative rule to keep up: If you've got a many to many, M:N, MN, or mucho a mucho relationship, just stick a bridge in between entity number 1 and entity number two. Borrow the primary key from each of those two entities, maybe throw on a date or time to make the bridge represent unique instances, and voila: normalization.

The hardest part for me has been to figure out what is and what is not many to many. We read of an example of plants and waterings. The author said one plant can be given many waterings, but one watering can only be given to one plant. This was confusing. I garden. I water more than one plant at a time. It's called the mist setting, a big cloud of water. Get outside database designer, experience the bounty of the mist setting!

But of course that author has a point. He's talking about an instance, a measured and clocked watering instance. The hibiscus got two cups of water at 1:32pm on June 24th.

I enjoy this parsing and labeling business very much, by the way. I've started wondering how I can find an internship that involves this kind of activity. I enjoy ERdiagramming too, and even decided to use a SmartDraw free trial. Unfortunately it's only 7 days, and it stamps a huge proprietary watermark on everything I create. Don't these people know I'm unemployed? I don't pay for software that irritates me, I don't even pay for software I like!