C5.21 ViTaL software recommendations

Software recommendations for system components of ViTaL, the Virtual Taxonomic Library, are as follows:
1 Bibliographic reference harvesting, aggregation and search modules
• The choice of application server framework and language is still open and will be decided in consultation with the development team.
2 Web application framework
• Drupal with standard and bespoke modules.
3 Metasearching and linking
Ex Libris Group applications
Metalib for metasearching, with the X-Server API module
SFX OpenURL link resolver and context management tools

National Botanic Garden of Belgium: The Virtual Herbarium

Few years ago, we have developped a querying on exported data from BG-BASE and direct link to images.
Many specimens have been encoded in BGBase and more than 20.000 of them have been digitized.
Here is a link to a short demo: http://www.br.fgov.be/tap/query.html

Since several months, another colleague is developping a brand new project: "The Virtual Herbarium"

The technology used to implement the project: PHP, PostgreSQL, MySQL.
The search criteria are: Genus, Species, Country, Type specimen, Collector, Barcode number etc...

C5.10 (Formerly D5.2.2.2) Operational function model for ATBI+M

The current component captures all details of existing software processes, that are practiced for inventorying purposes under the taxonomic researcher community.

Second ISTC Meeting September 13-14, 2007 in Berlin

The second ISTC meeting will be held between 12:00 – 17:00 on September 13th & between 09:00 – 13:00 on September 14th, 2007 in the Conference Room (A105) on the 2nd Floor of the Botanic Garden and Botanical Museum Berlin-Dahlem, Freie Universität Berlin, Königin-Luise-Str. 6-8, D-14191 Berlin, Germany.

Please note that the meeting is closed and open only to ISTC members.

An accommodation guide, which explains how to get here, as well as relevant maps can be found here

First EDIT Developer Meeting Agenda, September 6-7, 2007 in Berlin

The agenda and directions for the First EDIT Developer meeting in Berlin September 6-7th , 2007 is available here: http://dev.e-taxonomy.eu/trac/wiki/DeveloperMeeting2007

C5.45 Report identified and described suitable taxonomic tools

The initial EDIT work plan assumed that the Platform for Cybertaxonomy would be a set of loosely coupled taxonomic tools complying with certain information standards, which are to be defined by the project. Preferably, these tools are already existing ones rather than software, which had to be developed from scratch within the framework of EDIT. Therefore activities in work package 5 focus very much on the testing and assessment of software already in use and development capacities should be directed to extension and modification of selected solutions.

C5.08 Operational functional model for revisionary taxonomy

One of the central goals of Workpackage 5 is the creation of an internet platform for cybertaxonomy, a collection of online resources designed to enable the scientific community to practise taxonomic work online. In any project involving the design and creation of new software platforms, the first effort must be to fully understand the existing work processes that the software aims to facilitate. To this end, an investigation was undertaken into the current work practises in the field, captured under Component C5.08.

C5.35 Predictive distribution modelling report & C5.38 Gap analysis in local inventories report

Taxonomists have to continue doing what they have done during the last three hundred years: to describe the variety of life organisms and their location. Although this colossal task is important by itself its relevance is higher now due to current need of reliable biodiversity data. In the attached report we review the available scientific information on the possibilities and usefulness of the compiled species distribution data for basic and applied purposes, two of the deliverables of EDIT Work Package 5.4 “Geographical platform components” (deliverables 5.35 -Predictive distribution modelling report- and 5.38 -Gap analysis in local inventories report-).

M5.16 Criteria for descriptive tools agreed and published

Milestone M5.16 summarizes the main criteria on which the taxonomic tools test phase will soon be based of.
Criteria have been structured in five principles categories that are technical properties, knowledge representation, functionalities, user interface and some more general questions.
This list of criteria is non exhaustive and will still be modified after taxonomists interviews.
To download the milestone please click here

C5.53 Data portal prototype for exemplar taxonomic groups

A data portal for frequent online publication of taxonomic revisions has been developed in close cooperation with the EDIT WP6 Cichorieae exemplar group. It is also successfully in use to publish the EDIT WP6 Diptera Exemplar group data. The php based system provides a unified insight into the data of projects working on the revision of taxonomic groups. During the design process we focused on a layout which not only adapts the look of according books but also extends it by the means of web technology.

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