The Hercules Project (2009-2011): towards a renewed ODIS

On 15th October 2008, the Hercules Foundation, the Flemish agency for the funding of large- and medium-scale research infrastructure, granted ODIS a subsidy for the renewal and further development of the instrument. That was the starting signal for the so-called “Hercules Project”, that is now going at full speed.

Information node

A first aim of the Hercules Project is the further development of ODIS into an information node in a network of data collections. More than ever before, the database will be involved in the fast-growing information networks in and outside Flanders. The ODIS-content will be put at disposal in external environments. As an authority database, ODIS will be linked to the library and archive catalogues of its partner institutions and of other players in the field and will be coupled to digital repositories of the partner institutions. All this will happen according to international standards (like the Open Archives Initiative Protocol for Metadata Harvesting).

Research-supportive functions

A second goal is the offering of more and user-friendly research-supportive functions, on the input as well as on the output side. The input side will get a new design. The introduction of layout tools and a spell check in the text fields and the facilitation of  the look-up of terms in the authority lists and of the input of data series will make the instrument much user-friendlier. We also aim at a differentiation of the input environment: users should for instance be able to define additional fields and thesaurus terms. So, they can adjust the database to their specific research needs. Moreover, in the future, an English input environment will be offered and the input of non-Belgian data will be made possible. This will greatly enhance the international potential of ODIS.

On the output side, the already existing basic functions will, where necessary, be modernized, refined and extended. Furthermore, new tools of analysis will be provided. The implementation of GIS-software into ODIS will for instance create the possibility to represent search results on a map and to carry out spatial analyses. In the future, it will also be possible to export ODIS-data packages in a desired format. And last but not least, an English OPAC will be created.

At this moment, data about organizations, persons, publications, archival units and election results can be put into ODIS. As part of the Hercules Project, a module for the description of heritage relics and sites (in the first instance immovable) will be added. Of course, it will be possible to relate heritage records to other ODIS-records. The heritage module’s data structure will be based upon relevant international standards. Another planned adaptation is the creation within ODIS of a central repository, via which information that does not fit well into the data structure (e.g. membership lists and membership statistics of organizations, …) can be stored and presented.

The following scheme shows the intended configuration:

Technical environment

A third and last objective of the Hercules Project is the creation of a modern and durable technical environment, which implies a renewal of the hard- and software environment of the ODIS-device and the purchase of new servers. This will have a positive impact on the speed of use.

Via this website, we will keep you informed about the concrete execution of the Hercules Project. If you have any questions or suggestions, you can always contact us at info@odis.be.