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About the DLA Infrastructure
The Software
The DLA (Digital Library Architecture) is a piece of the Penn Libraries' software infrastructure that enables the web delivery of our digital content and digital records. It was developed by the Penn Libraries, using open source applications like Lucene, Solr, and Cocoon, and relies extensively on XML and XSLT. Developed in a generalist manner, it is meant to deliver various library content, like images, book facsimiles, or sound files, as well as metadata records (for instance our EAD finding aids collection, or VCAT, the catalog that describes our physical DVD and VHS video collection). In fact it also allows for the delivery of "database-like" data, like our staff directory, or the list of upcoming workshops offered by the library. Every collection delivered through the DLA is enabled out of the box with features like facet browsing, search with relevance ranking, RSS and Media RSS feeds, and OAI metadata exposure. The delivery of each collection can be customized through the use of a "branding file" that controls the look-and-feel of the interface, and enables the choice of collection-specific facets, collection-specific fields to display in the result lists, and other collection-specific features.
The Sites and Collections
The DLA powers a growing number of sites and collections at Penn. Here is a list of all applications currently in production:
- Franklin: Penn Libraries Catalog
- Fisher Fine Arts Image Collection
- Furness Theatrical Image Collection
- Penn in Hand: Selected Manuscripts
- New Books Plus
- OLAC Language Resource Catalog
- PACSCL Finding Aids
- Philadelphia General Hospital Photo Collection
- Penn (EAD) Finding Aids
- Penn Libraries Staff Directory
- Print at Penn
- South Asia Image Collections
- University Archives Image Collection
- Vcat: Video Catalog
- Wheeler Image Collection
The People
Many Penn Libraries people have contributed to the DLA since its inception. Some have been engaged in the core development of the project, while others got involved during the development of a specific DLA collection. The DLA participants come from many different library departments, including Information Technology and Digital Development, Information Processing Center, Public Services, Collection Development & Management, SCETI, Rare Book & Manuscript Library, and Departmental Libraries. Increasingly people beyond the Penn Libraries are also getting involved in DLA projects. In all cases, we thank everyone very much for their contribution.