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In an effort to prevent people from becoming "blind" to the toolkit (a very real danger, IMHO -- a good example being OCLC's SiteSearch and the OBI) you might want to bundle a turnkey solution "separately". Also, if you have a modular design, have a brokerage service for modules, which would show that this is, indeed, and extensible architecture. Just a thought. -ross. Smith,Devon wrote: >If I may summarize and dissect: > >* The communication problem: conveying to people that MyLibrary is a >toolset >* The adoption problem: shortage of knowledgable tool-users in Library >Land, ie perl coders, impedes adoption >* Supply/Demand problem: as others have noted, some people want turnkey >instead of toolset > >Creating a turnkey solution can address all three problems. >In the first case, it could eliminate the problem. It might also >exacerbate the problem, in that people might become "blind" to the tools >and focus entirely on the turnkey option. In the second case, you could >either promote Perl within Library Land, or you could "sell" MyLibrary >in other communities. Selling in other communities would certainly be >aided by a simple turnkey solution demonstrating what the toolset can >do. And the third case is self-explanatory. > >Now that I've said with extra verbiage what others have already said >concisely, I have achieved a noteworthy and admirable pinnacle, >redundant superfluosness. > >/dev >-- >Devon Smith <[log in to unmask]> >Senior Software Engineer, Office of Research >OCLC Online Computer Library Center, Inc >http://www.oclc.org/research/ >http://www.oclc.org/research/staff/smith.htm > > > > > >-----Original Message----- >From: Code for Libraries [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of >Eric Lease Morgan >Sent: Friday, January 27, 2006 10:13 AM >To: [log in to unmask] >Subject: [CODE4LIB] toolbox versus turnkey > >One of the biggest problems we have been having with MyLibrary 3.0 is >getting across to people that MyLibrary is more like a toolbox and not a >turnkey system. It is a set of Perl modules used to create digital >library collections and services. It is not a program. > >One one hand, by turning the system into purely object-oriented Perl >modules we have been able to exploit all sorts of cool things with >MyLibrary: SRU interfaces, OAI interfaces, importing and exporting in >various formats (MARC, RSS, email, RDF, etc.). At the same time people >seem to be expecting a turn-key application. A similar discussion seems >to be happening on one of the DSpace lists. > >Given the low numbers of people in Library Land who can write (Perl) >scripts, this could be a serious impediment to adoption. > >In your opinions, what might be some resolutions or work-arounds to this >problem? > >-- >Eric Lease Morgan >University Libraries of Notre Dame > > >