Fabulous work Stuart and co.!


On Mon, Jun 30, 2014 at 3:48 PM, Stuart Snydman <[log in to unmask]>
wrote:

> I am happy to announce the release of Spotlight v0.1.0, available at
> http://github.com/sul-dlss/spotlight.
>
> Spotlight is a plugin for Blacklight, that enables libraries and other
> cultural heritage institutions to build online exhibits from content in
> their repositories to better highlight their digital collections.  It
> extends Blacklight by providing a self-service, forms-based user interface
> that allows exhibit-builders, such as librarians or faculty, to customize
> the search interface and homepage, and to build media-rich feature pages to
> better contextualize their collections.
>
> We've completed our first engineering phase, which consisted of 10
> sprints, and have been working with our Digital and Rare Maps Librarian to
> build out the first production instance of a Maps of Africa exhibit.
>
> If you are interested, have a look at two video screencasts:
>
> * a brief 4-minute tour of the completed site (http://youtu.be/_A7vTbbiF4g
> )
> * a slightly longer 8-minute demonstration of how to build a new site once
> a Spotlight instance has been associated with an index (
> http://youtu.be/qPJtgajJ4ic)
>
> The 0.1.0 release is ready for you to download, install and take for a
> test-drive.  We've already received detailed feedback from a few of you who
> have tested the setup, and that feedback has been most valuable - thank
> you!  We'd greatly appreciate feedback from a few more early adopters.
>
> The engineering team has taken a pause on development as we work with our
> curators to build the next few exhibits. But there is certainly much work
> left to be done.  There is a well populated backlog, and in the fall we
> intend to get back to work with a focus on the following areas:
>
> * Selection and indexing : the tools and workflow for adding new content
> to a Spotlight index and updating metadata as it changes in the metadata
> source or repository.
> * Support for more content types : Spotlight currently supports digital
> still image collections, and we intend to add support for audio, video,
> PDF, datasets, geospatial objects, web archives and more.
> * Theming : the ability for builders to choose from multiple visual themes
> to apply to an exhibit or collection, and to add custom header images and
> branding.
> * Repository integration : currently, a Spotlight exhibit can be built on
> top of any Solr index. Work has begun to more easily create new Spotlight
> indexes directly from digital repository systems, and to save
> exhibit-specific metadata and supporting content into repositories. Or
> initial integration efforts are focussed on Fedora, but we expect
> integration with other platforms will follow.
>
> We'd welcome your involvement and contributions in this next phase of
> work, so please email us at [log in to unmask] when you
> are ready to jump in.
>
> -Stu Snydman
>
> ****************************************
> Stuart Snydman
> Head of Digitization & Web Development
> Stanford University Libraries
> http://dlss.stanford.edu
>
>
> Links:
>
> Spotlight github project: http://github.com/sul-dlss/spotlight
> Project Blacklight: http://projectblacklight.org/
> Maps of Africa exhibit: http://exhibits.stanford.edu/maps-of-africa/
> Video tour of a completed exhibit: http://youtu.be/_A7vTbbiF4g
> Video demo of how to build a new exhibit: http://youtu.be/qPJtgajJ4ic
> Blog post about Spotlight release: http://stanford.io/1k6QDWF
>
> **and of course, please forgive the cross-post**
>



-- 
Tod Robbins
Digital Asset Manager, MLIS
todrobbins.com | @todrobbins <http://www.twitter.com/#!/todrobbins>