Open Repository blog

Open Repository and the Health Services Executive Release the HSE Survey Results

Emma Hedington — Wed, 05 Sep 2012 15:46:37 +0000

In 2009, Open Repository, a repository service from the open access publisher BioMed Central, partnered with the Health Services Executive (HSE) of Ireland, to provide the HSE’s repository service, LENUS.

LENUS is an open access Irish Health Repository, which stores theses and journal articles published by Health Services Executive, the former regional Health Boards, and HSE affiliated publications. To date the repository holds more than 13,000 items.

Open Repository and the HSE recently conducted a joint survey with their authors and researchers on the usage of LENUS to elicit information about who is using it, reasons for usage and how, in practice, they are using the repository. Not only did this survey raise awareness of LENUS, it also gave their submitters an opportunity to provide further product development that they would see as being useful or necessary to the continuing success of their repository. Open Repository also provided a random prize draw for all respondents.

450 participants from mixed health professions, mostly from health-based communities, took part in the survey, with 99.4% of them within Ireland.

Over 50% of LENUS usage was to discover Irish health related publications, mainly used in practice, for patient care and research purposes. It was also encouraging that over 54% submitted their publications to the repository and 40% did not submit because they thought their publication was irrelevant. Institutional Repository’s (IR) often lack the buy-in from their submitters to deposit their work and these figures are very impressive on the IR landscape.

Further analysis of the data revealed over 70% of respondents found the repository very user -friendly and easy to use, with the majority of internal users going directly to LENUS rather than using Google. Additionally, a staggering 95.9% were more than satisfied with the navigation provided by their enhanced DSpace repository.

Open Repository has improved and enhanced the latest version of DSpace 1.8.2, and has made additional customizations to LENUS. One of these enhancements was the inclusion of an interactive, regional map of Ireland, showing the items contained within each region, which can be viewed on the User Interface. When surveyed about this new feature, over 50% of submitters found this enhancement very useful, and it is an indicator of how Open Repository partners with its clients to drive usage and improve the user- experience. A further enhancement that Open Repository made to all clients’ repositories was the inclusion of a Google Analytics dashboard that can be publicly or privately available, as the organizations deems appropriate. The statistics package shows a wide range of metrics: external traffic, countries, cities, the most downloaded and viewed items of that area of the hierarchy, and again, is a way of driving submission to the IR. Open Repository also provided the Administrators access to a full Google Analytics account that we have set up for each client to provide further data over and above the DSpace statistical package that is on offer. We are pleased to report that over 69% thought that this feature is a worthy addition to LENUS, and it is regularly used.

Over 64% of users utilized the email alerts and RSS feeds features, in order to keep themselves up to date with newly submitted items to their areas of interest.

The survey also looked into publication data from HSE authors and users, including their views on open access publishing. Given that BioMed Central is a pioneer in open access publishing, it was fantastic to see that 94% of their authors agreed that where research is publicly funded, it should automatically be made open access. Further data revealed that 95.6% found the submitting materials to the repository very easy, or easy. Again, as part of the service provided by Open Repository, each submission template is customized for each collection, thereby providing a unique and relevant experience for that collection, and the type of items held within it.

The survey was a great success to all involved, and Open Repository continues to partner with the HSE and its global client base on further customizations to their repositories, adding new and exciting functions and features, with the aim of enhancing the DSpace platform on which Open Repository is built.

If you would like any further information regarding our service and how we can share our expertise with you, please do not hesitate to get in touch.

Claire

Claire Bundy
Open Repository Specialist
claire.bundy@biomedcentral.com
www.openrepository.com
www.biomedcentral.com

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The Finch Report: developing the role of repositories

Emma Hedington — Thu, 09 Aug 2012 12:57:05 +0000

As you may already be aware, Dame Janet Finch CBE recently released the Working Group on Expanding Access to Published Research Findings report ‘Accessibility, sustainability, excellence: how to expand access to research publications’, otherwise known as the Finch Report.

Open Repository is delighted that the report recognizes the role that open access plays in publishing, and the call for the further development of repositories in the academic arena in the future. The following outlines the report findings, and how we can help your institution support the green route to open access.

Developing the role of repositories in the UK

Whilst communicating research findings through journals and other publications has always been at the heart of the scientific and broader research community, the rapidly developing online environment has recently changed the way researchers are accessing articles. However, subscription barriers mean that those outside of the Higher Education sector and large research-intensive companies have yet to see the benefits that the online environment brings in providing access to research and its results.

To combat this, the Finch Report recommends that the UK should embrace the transition to open access, and suggests a number of initiatives, including:

“The infrastructure of subject and institutional repositories should be developed so that they play a valuable role complementary to formal publishing, particularly in providing access to research data and to grey literature, and in digital preservation.”

Although many universities in the UK currently have established repositories, the Finch Report believes that the rates at which published papers have been deposited in them so far has been disappointing. To bring greater use by both authors and readers, in the next few years repositories must become both better integrated and interoperable, with higher standards of accessibility. To this effect, repositories will be used to perform the following functions in the UK research arena:

1. Provide a showcase for university research, and support research information management systems
2. Preserve and provide access to research data, theses and grey literature in the wider scholarly communications sphere

Open Repository: How we can help

Open Repository is in agreement with the Finch Report, and we will do all that we can to help support institutions in developing their institutional repositories to provide the best possible showcase for their research output.

Open Repository builds, hosts, customizes and maintains enhanced DSpace repositories for organizations, providing a reliable and cost-effective service. Open Repository allows organizations to:

- Comply with open access mandates
- Increase the profile, visibility and usage of their intellectual output
- Showcase their research to a large and unrestricted audience

If you would like any non-obligatory advice on the development of open access in the UK, including the evolving role of repositories, please do get in touch and we will be happy to help. Our quarterly Open Repository newsletter contains the very latest repository news – sign up here.

The Open Repository Team
info@openrepository.com

Open Repository attends ALA Annual 2012

Emma Hedington — Tue, 03 Jul 2012 03:34:26 +0000

The ALA Annual
Conference (ALA) was as lively as ever for the BioMed Central and Open Repository team. Stationed in a
booth next to the Springer stand, Bob Schatz (North American Sales Manager) and
Sana Mulla (Marketing Executive) welcomed a steady stream of attendees, some
from existing BioMed Central Member
institutes and others from interested parties.

On Saturday during the conference, a successful Open
Repository workshop was held representing libraries on four continents, which
provided attendees with a comprehensive overview
and analysis of how institutional repositories can be used in the library.
With repositories growing in popularity, we will likely host more workshops at
future ALA shows.

If you are interested, see Bob Schatz’s article, A Brief Primer on Repositories, in the latest issue of ‘Against The Grain’.

Many thanks to all those who came by the booth to
discuss open access initiatives, our Memberships Programs, our growing journal
content (including SpringerOpen journals) and repositories – further proof that
our professional world continues to be as interesting as ever.

If you would like to know more on how Open Repository
could help your organization, or if you would like to receive a free
demonstration of the product, please do get
in touch.

Bob Schatz

North American Sales Manager

Open Repository upgrades all clients to DSpace V1.8

Nishkala Thiru — Thu, 12 Apr 2012 02:50:31 +0000

Open Repository is pleased to announce all customers have been upgraded to DSpace, version 1.8.

Benefits of the upgrade include:

     •   the ability to export communities and collections
     •   RSS feeds now support richer features, such as iTunes podcast and publishing to iTunesU
   •   supervisors and supervision orders
       •   open search functionality
       •   the ability for administrators to carry out more complex metadata editing in batches

Automatic upgrades are part of the service offered by Open Repository, enabling customers to concentrate on the management of content within their repositories, while quickly gaining the benefits of all the latest features.

When speaking about the upgrade, Bryan Vickery, Chief Operating Officer of BioMed Central said “A major upgrade can sometimes be a daunting and difficult experience for repository managers, who want to benefit from the latest developments and tools but lack the IT resource or expertise to keep up in a fast moving area. Many in-house repositories, even those using DSpace, are not upgraded to the latest release because of this and miss out on time-saving features and the latest in interoperability. Open Repository’s hosted solution can keep your repository service current without that pain.”

The Open Repository service is constantly evolving with extensive customizations to meet our clients’ needs.

Open Repository is a DuraSpace Registered Service Provider.

If you would like any further information regarding our service and how we can share our expertise with you, please do not hesitate to contact us.

ALA Midwinter 2012

Nishkala Thiru — Mon, 13 Feb 2012 04:16:32 +0000

BioMed Central’s Open Repository recently exhibited at the ALA Midwinter Conference in Dallas. Warm and sunny, it was a great change of scenery with excellent food!

In a climate of stretched budgets, attendance at the conference seemed low. However it was great that our representatives: Bob Schatz and Nish Thiru were kept very busy at the booth. It was also fantastic to see the support of open access from the attendees and for us to provide an opportunity to inform them about how Open Repository’s hosted solution could help them meet their green, open access needs.

Bob Schatz presented a very well-received workshop entitled Institutional Repositories and the Open Repository Solution. Examining the role repositories serve in institutions, where they fit in the larger environment of scholarly communication and benefits of a hosted solution, it provided a dynamic and engaging forum of discussion for attendees. It was also nice to catch-up with the recently launched University of Arizona Libraries to receive their feedback on the conference and an update of how their repository has been received at the show.

If you would like to know more about how Open Repository could help your organization or receive a free demonstration of the service, please do get in touch. We look forward to attending ALA Annual 2012 in Anaheim in June!

Aiding those in poverty: Oxfam GB partners with Open Repository

Nishkala Thiru — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 03:37:17 +0000

Today Oxfam GB,
a leading international charity with a worldwide reputation for
excellence in the delivery of humanitarian aid and development work, has
adopted Open Repository’s enhanced DSpace hosted solution.

When
Oxfam began a project to create a website to handle their policy,
practice and research materials for professional audiences, they
realized there was no single, secure deposit location for their digital
assets on poverty and suffering worldwide. Hence, they decided to
implement a repository that could store their digital assets in multiple
formats, have simple search and deposit functions to suit users with no
background in repository use, and therefore enable Oxfam to showcase
their large and ever evolving output of research, program learning and
policy information to a global audience.

Having decided they
needed a repository, Oxfam chose to implement a hosted solution because
they lacked dedicated resources in-house to develop, manage and support
one. By partnering with Open Repository, they received a customized
repository: the Oxfam iLibrary comes from a “tried and tested” company
which incorporates advanced open source features and upgrades. This
removed the internal technical demands required of an in-house solution,
allowing Oxfam to focus on developing the content of the repository
with their staff worldwide and ensuring quality metadata so their
content is easy to find.

Speaking as the new system went live,
Robert Cornford, Communications Manager from Oxfam GB said, “We have had
a very interesting experience working with Open Repository to establish
the Oxfam iLibrary, from working out a classification system for our
very varied content through developing a remote deposit structure so
people across our programme offices with limited IT experience can
upload materials, to integrating with a separate website. We now have a
repository where we can capture our experience for internal programme
development, and share our knowledge externally easily and quickly
through the website. Our repository, the Oxfam iLibrary, will have an
immediate impact on our own ways of working internally and, with our new
information website now live, will make our content available to
external audiences across the world.”

To learn more about why Oxfam chose a repository and how it was implemented, read their case study.

To
see the new Oxfam website for development professionals, fed from the
Oxfam iLibrary, visit to the Oxfam Policy and Practice website.

To learn more about how Open Repository can help you meet your open access requirements, please get in touch.

University of Derby internally launch their repository

Nishkala Thiru — Wed, 21 Dec 2011 04:13:25 +0000

The University of Derby, UK, recently held an event introducing its research department to UDORA, the University’s repository.

Philip Plowden, Pro Vice Chancellor for Research, was the main speaker along with the Head of Research, Professor Paul Bridges. They spoke on the benefits of open access and institutional repositories for the institute, researchers, the library and the general public as a whole.

The day was hosted by Richard Finch, Academic Services Manager for the University Library and the repository team: Melanie Keady, E-Resources Development Manager; Tim Peacock, E-Resources & Interlending Administrator and Val Wilkins, Resource and Metadata Librarian who have all contributed to making UDORA a success.

It was a pleasure to be at the event and to speak directly with many researchers. There is a great deal of enthusiasm for the repository and, since the launch event, direct submissions to UDORA by researchers have increased significantly.

I was delighted to hear, from all speakers, such positive comments about the level of service provided by Open Repository. You can read more details via the case study.

If you have any questions about UDORA or Open Repository, please do get in touch.

Claire Bundy, Open Repository Specialist

Open Repository Releases OpenAthens SP

Nishkala Thiru — Thu, 01 Dec 2011 05:19:40 +0000

Open Repository, the enhanced DSpace hosted service from
BioMed Central has always worked with institutes to provide LDAP (Lightweight Directory Access Protocol) to enable
access and maintain a distributed directory service for accessing individual
repositories. Directory services provide
an organized set of records, often with a hierarchical structure, enabling the
need for a ‘Single Sign-On’ for all solutions held within an organization,
without the need for individual solution log-in details.

I am pleased to announce that this service has been
extended for OpenAthens
SP (Service Provider). OpenAthens SP
is a standard compliant platform which enables users to securely manage access
to all the solutions held within their organization via a Single Sign-On portal. This also includes Shibboleth and SAML which
are welcome standards within the Open Repository community.

If you would
like any further information regarding our service and how we can share our
expertise with you, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Claire Bundy

Open
Repository Specialist

Open Repository in the USA: The University of Arizona’s repository

Nishkala Thiru — Wed, 09 Nov 2011 10:31:40 +0000

Open Repository is pleased to announce its first institutional US customer, the University of Arizona.

As a premier public research university, the University of Arizona’s Campus Repository, managed by the University Libraries, supports the dissemination of campus intellectual output by collecting, archiving and preserving scholarly materials produced by campus faculty and researchers, as well as showcasing the materials to an unrestricted audience on a global scale.

The University Libraries sought a hosted solution for the Campus Repository because they wanted to benefit from the experience and expertise the Open Repository staff had with DSpace technology. By implementing the Open Repository service, the Libraries now have a uniquely customized, reliable and cost-effective repository solution which allows library staff to focus on working with faculty and students to develop and maintain content in the repository. In addition, Open Repository migrated the School of Information Resources & Library Science’s DLIST collection from E-Prints into the hosted DSpace UA Campus Repository.

When asked about the services from Open Repository, Kimberly Chapman, Campus Repository Service Librarian at University of Arizona said “The set up process has been straightforward and easy; we’ve appreciated the support from Open Repository. Open Repository has been helpful with metadata schema customizations and batch loading that have helped us move forward with several collections.”

If you would like to learn more about the University of Arizona’s Campus Repository or Open Repository, please do get in touch.

Virginia Henderson Library repository launched

Nishkala Thiru — Tue, 01 Nov 2011 11:30:23 +0000

The Virginia Henderson International Nursing Library (VHL) is the latest Open Repository customer to have launched their repository at the Sigma Theta Tau International (STTI) Biennial Convention in Texas last Saturday, 29th October.

STTI offers nurses, in all roles around the globe, online access to reliable nursing information that can be easily utilized and shared. Recent advances in Internet technologies and wider policies regarding mandatory open access to published articles influenced STTI’s decision to expand their online Registry of Nursing Research abstract database into a new, full-text service.

Margie Wilson, Library Manager at STTI stated “When looking to enhance our system, we found that the Open Repository system offered by BioMed Central provided the services that would support the conversion and delivery of our existing data into the format needed to support the enhancements.”

Open Repository’s stand at the convention has received some great feedback on the repository – you can view some photos of the event here.

If you would like to learn more about the VHL repository or Open Repository, please do get in touch.