As you probably know, UKCoRR is an entirely unfunded organisation which relies heavily on the time and energy of its members, and on the generosity of universities to host our meetings – on this occasion our heartfelt thanks to the University of Portsmouth Library, and particularly to Andy Barrow and (associate university librarian) Ken Dick, for very kindly putting us up and keeping us fed and coffee-ed, and for Ken’s warm welcome at the start of the meeting.

This was a very well-attended event: nearly 50 UKCoRR members and invited guests, from as far afield as Edinburgh (350+ miles away)… and a packed schedule. So packed, in fact, that we probably didn’t leave enough breathing space. We’ll build in more rest breaks and time for gossip professional networking at the next meeting!

1. Slides from all the presentations below will shortly be made available on UKCoRR’s slideshare account, at: slideshare.net/ukcorr
2. Some of the speakers kindly agreed to be filmed, and videos will be made available at: youtube.com/user/ukcorr

After Ken had welcomed us to Portstmouth, UKCoRR chair Gaz Johnson gave the first presentation of the day, with a science fiction gloss and a look at the possible future directions of UKCoRR. Gaz has already blogged about his talk. A few key points and questions:

• The committee needs to consult with members, and these members’ meetings are a good way of doing that!
• Our priorities (validated by the user survey, 2011) should be best practice exchange, lobbying, and advocacy;
• Is our lack of a membership fee our USP? It means we’re beholden to no-one, we don’t have to serve anyone’s agenda (other than our members’), and it makes it easier to avoid conflicts of interest…
• …but it’s worth considering what we could do differently if we were funded;
• Should membership of UKCoRR bring with it certain responsibilities?
• Aren’t repositories generally understaffed in the UK?

Next up, Andrew Dorward of EDINA on the UK RepositoryNet+ project to build “a socio-technical infrastructure to support repositories”. Andrew gave an overview of the original RepositoryNet project, and the ongoing aim to build shared services for repositories. Recently, the new project interviewed a range of UKCoRR members, Open Access publishers, members of ARMA, and active researchers about the repository landscape — broadly, those interviews validated the current approach to services — but Andrew noted that in repository “ecology“, there is some room for drawing together the range of services (search, deposit statistics, etc.) into fewer but more comprehensive tools. He also talked about the growth in OA publishing since the launch of PLoS in 2003: see doi:10.1371/journal.pbio.1001235.t001

Last up before lunch, Marie-Therese Gramstadt from the University of the Creative Arts gave us an update on the Kultivate project, the advocacy and decision-making toolkits, and the associated Kultur II group, sharing best practice in repository design for creative and visual arts research. Asked to show hands, about half the UKCoRR delegates had arts researchers ‘at home’ – about the same number of people also expressed an interest in continuing the work of Kultur II. Some Kultivate links:

• Kultivate advocacy toolkit
• Kultivate decision-making toolkit
• The Kultivate plugin for EPrints will be added to the EPrints Bazaar soon

After lunch – the lightning talks!

• Talking about a new strategic marketing project for WRAP (the University of Warwick’s repository) – Yvonne Budden explained the need to revamp the repo’s image, and how WRAP piggybacked on a wider redesign project at Warwick and used an interesting methodology from the Kay Grieves at the University of Sunderland, summarised as: (1) Match services to users (2) Transform services into benefits (3) Translate benefits into messages! Freebie materials (highlighter pens, etc.) are being used as bribes to encourage depositors to take the message of the repo back to their colleagues. A really striking new black-and-yellow colour scheme!
• Matthew Smith from the University of So’ton, on the EPrints Shelves project. Building a tool to give users more control over how results from their repository are displayed on author profile pages, etc., by allowing people to log in and add/remove items from a ‘shelf’. Those ‘shelves’ can then be exported using normal EPrints export tools. Shelves should be released to the EPrints Bazaar soon. Lots of interest in the room about this plugin!
• Tracey Kent on the use of a “request a copy” for e-theses at the University of Birmingham. Birmingham offer four options for access to e-theses: from [1] “full OA” through to [2] “request a copy” (with theses available through EThOS), [3] a more limited request (excerpts only; not on EThOS), and finally [4] fully-embargoed theses. They went from around 2,500 thesis requests per year to more than 250,000 requests/yr., with ~88% on some kind of Open Access (options [1] or [2]).
• Margaret Feetham of Southampton Solent University talked about running their mixed-economy repository (research, student work, university publications) …with (very familiar to UKCoRR members!) little budget and few staff. SSU practice unmediated deposit, with academics given training on  copyright and licensing issues. Margaret explained how they’ve still managed to get an impressive deposit rate by engaging keen users and advocates, and by working with the university’s research services – with REF2014 as an attention-focuser!
• From the STFC (Science and Technology Facilities Council), Catherine Jones explained how they are using CrossRef to create large numbers of (metadata-only) records in epubs.stfc.ac.uk – scientific authors like the ability to use that repository’s quick & easy DOI import tool to deposit records, but are now pressing to be able to speed the process up even further. Challenges of recording articles with hundreds or even thousands of collaborators – not uncommon in some areas of physics!

A quick breather, then straight on to the first of two invited speakers to wind the day up:

Sarah Gould of the British Library on some of the changes in the pipeline for the EThOS service. There’s general recognition that some of the features of EThOS (e.g. the “checkout” process for supplying PDF copies of theses) are a bit old hat, and too rooted in old document supply processes. The limited metadata applied to many items in EThOS is also a barrier. EThOS are engaging a new development to drag the service kicking and screaming into the 21st century, and are also engaging on a big programme (working with the BL’s library systems vendors as well as with panels of librarians) to improve the quality and range of metadata. There was an interesting discussion at this point about the possibility of EThOS linking to copies of theses in institutional repositories, rather than/as well as holding digitised copies – what might that mean for the responsibilities of the BL and institutions to ensure preservation of access?

Bravely accepting the final slot of the day, Phil Barker of JISC CETIS on the world of Open Educational Resources (OERs). Another show of hands: fewer than 25% of UKCoRR members in the room have involvement with OERs (either through projects, or through working institutional OER repos). That’s not too much of a surprise: the issues involved in storing and managing repositories of OERs can be much more complex (multiple complex objects, quality control, metadata requirements, copyright and licensed re-use, the sheer number of people involved!) and many institutions have shyed away.

Phil talked about some of the motivators for universities to engage with OER, including the morals obligation of the university (“…charter to widen knowledge”), the role of OERs in marketing universities / acting as a shop window / leading to student recruitment, and the hope that the rigorous approach needed in creating of OERs will provide a beneficial ‘trickle down’ effect into the design and management of all educational materials. Some food-for-though OER links:

• The Cape Town Open Education Declaration of OER principles
• Phil Barker’s blog
• Open Courseware Consortium
• Current JISC OER projects
• HEA Change Academy (also funding some OER projects)

As always, there was a breathtaking amount of ‘stuff’ for us to get stuck into — useful advice, supportive discussions, and news of exciting work going on — and the recognised benefit of UKCoRR members’ meetings as being a refreshingly practical, non-threatening and safe place for repository staff to talk to people faced with the same problems every day. Keep your eyes peeled for the next couple of UKCoRR events planned for this year: looks like 2012′s going to be one of our busiest yet.

“The 2011 UKeiG Jason Farradane Award has been awarded to the United Kingdom Council of Research Repositories (UKCoRR). Founded in 2007, UKCoRR is a professional membership-driven organisation managed for and by those staff working throughout the UK as Open Access repository administrators and managers.”

The Jason Farradane award is “made by UKeiG to an individual or a group of people in recognition of outstanding contribution to the information profession“. UKeiG are the UK e-Information Group, a more-than-usually-autonomous special interest group of CILIP.

In other news, we’ve finally managed to get the new UKCoRR website launched. You can see it for yourself, at:

• http://ukcorr.org/

I was at Lincoln Central Library on Free School Lane this morning for a meeting of LISN, the Lincolnshire Information Services Network.

LISN (pronounced listen) has been in existence since August 1998 when a group of (mainly) college and university librarians decided to network on a formalised basis. The group has evolved considerably since then to welcome any Lincolnshire-based information provider/library wishing to exchange ideas and information to benefit the Lincolnshire community.

Every LISN meeting runs to a similar pattern: after the standard apologies-minutes-matters-arising bumf, we discuss at length a topic of interest to Lincolnshire libraries of all sectors (today’s topic was on the subject of online learning materials: “what we are doing in terms of providing online interactive learning materials to support the users of our collections and resources? Are we using learning materials provided by suppliers or creating our own?“). Then each member library provides an institutional update; AOB; end.

I’m meant to look after the LISN website (www.lisn.org.uk) – I’ve not always been terribly good at giving this job enough attention (colleagues from the UKCoRR committee will find that a depressingly familiar story), which is why I’m pleased that fellow LISN rep Rachael Adair from Lincoln College has offered to share that task with me.

The other interesting topic that came up at this morning’s meeting is the progress Bishop Grosseteste University College are making with their library extension – you can see the latest construction photos on their Facebook page, at: http://www.facebook.com/bishopglibrary

1. Discovery selection & implementation;
2. JISC Orbital project (0.3FTE) – based mainly in CERD until March 2013;
3. Possible JISC-funded Jerome follow-on work;
4. Development of the Lincoln Repository – working closely with the Library Institutional Repository Officer (BJ), the Research & Enterprise Office + the subject librarians on the following areas:
   • Metadata workflow and service development
   • Advocacy/training
   • Building a “Research Showcase”
   • CRIS-like development, bibliometrics, and supporting the REF
   • Developing staff profiles on the University’s website
   • E-theses
   • Helpdesk integration (…possibly)

The following are projects—part of the current Library I.T. strategy—that I’ll contribute to but probably won’t lead, and/or work that’s going on in the background that I need to stay abreast of:

1. Reading list development (project);
2. Authentication (project);
3. Participation in various JISC working groups as well as UKCoRR and LISN;
4. Working with the Acquisitions team on new team rôles/areas of work;
5. Monitoring and guiding e-resource management (ERM), authentication, and responding to user problems (this area of work will be looked after day-to-day by the Library (E-resources) Assistant (EV), supported by other staff, as part of the cover for my JISC project work);
6. Supporting the subject librarian for technology in a review of the Library’s presence on the University Portal;
7. Supporting the subject librarians in promoting and supporting the use of RefWorks 2.0;
8. Supporting the HELS in administering copyright/digitisation services and the use of Blackboard.
9. Initiating a new CALM user group.
10. Co-ordinating LIG (the Library Innovation Group).
11. Participating in the work of LNCD.

G’won then: what have I forgotten about?

My #1 priority as UKCoRR ‘Web & Publicity Officer‘ is to upgrade the group’s website (www.ukcorr.org).

The old website – graciously funded and hosted by the CRC at Nottingham for the past n years, is beginning to show its age. I’m copying over all the content to a WordPress site hosted at the University of Lincoln; as soon as it’s the equal of the ‘old’, current site, we’ll transfer the *.ukcorr.org domain over, and take it forward from there.

You can see the (extremely very much still in-development) new UKCoRR website, for the time being, at: http://ukcorr.blogs.lincoln.ac.uk/

On the 22nd of July I was at the University of Nottingham for an RSP (Repositories Support Project) event, Repositories and CRIS: working smartly together. A few of us from the UKCoRR committee were there, giving UKCoRR’s new Twitter account some hammer. My colleagues, David Young from the University Research Office and Elif Varol from the Library, also went.

Here are some very brief notes on the various presentations and activities – all of the slides are on the RSP’s website.

• Simon Kerridge of ARMA (on the research administration, the CERIF standard, and the EXRI project). This has already led to some movement on the idea of a JISCMail ‘super list’ to allow information to be shared easily between members of ARMA and UKCoRR. All the talk of CERIF and REF requirements has also prompted us (Lincoln people) into action – a separate blog post about this will follow.
• RePOSIT presentations and breakout discussion – this was great fun. Like being back at the RSP Winter School again. Repository work and advocacy makes far more sense and the panic easiest quelled when I talk to other repository managers around a table.
• After lunch: more on euroCRIS from Mark Cox of King’s College London. Loads to look at, including the R4R (Readiness 4 REF) plugin for EPrints, and MICE (Measuring Impact under CERIF).
• The University of Glasgow’s “alternative approach”, involving some hardcore use of EPrints. This is the model Lincoln is following and it’s great to see it working so successfully for Glasgow. See their Research Outcomes work and Will Nixon & colleagues’ Enlighten blog. Also related: EPrints: A Hybrid CRIS/Repository.
• Finally, a whistlestop tour of EPrints version 3.3 and some of its new features, including one-click installation of plugins from the EPrints “Bazaar”. Looks very cool.

At this point: run for bus.

While UKCoRR’s “official” web presence is in the shop for repairs, we’ve been taking tentative steps to securing UKCoRR a space on some of the big social websites. In no particular order, we now have profiles on:

• Facebook
• Twitter (@ukcorr)
• Slideshare
• LinkedIn

Rather than obsess and worry about whether to engage with these (or any other social sites: Google+, anyone?), the committee are taking the time-honoured “just do it” approach, and assuming hoping that our fellow UKCoRR members—inherently social creatures all!—will naturally gravitate to using those sites with which they’re most comfortable.

…none of this is intended to replace in any way the existing tools for UKCoRR networking which have already proved themselves so useful: the events and the members’ mailing list.

Q. Where else on the open web should UKCoRR plant its flag?

Next up: news of what we have planned for the main UKCoRR web site.

Paul Stainthorp
UKCoRR Web & Publicity Officer

Nominations for positions on the UKCoRR Committee closed last week and I can confirm that from tomorrow the line-up is as follows:

• Chair – Gareth Johnson
• Secretary – Nicky Cashman
• Technical Officer – Nick Sheppard
• Web & Publicity Officer – Paul Stainthorp
• External Liaison Officer – Dominic Tate

On behalf of all committee members I’d like to say a big thank you to Graham Stone for his hard work during his term as Chair – I’m delighted that he is staying on as a member, and we’re all pleased that we’ll continue to benefit from his wisdom and experience!

A weasel, yesterday.

My first priority, in my new role as Web & Publicity Officer, is to make more of UKCoRR’s web site (www.ukcorr.org).

There were some varied and interesting 5-minute lightning talks from UKCoRR members, as well as from our special guests Josh Brown of JISC, who talked about JISC’s future plans and funding arrangements, and Richard Jones‘ mind-bending (in a good way) presentation of the possibilities of the SWORD v2 deposit-sharing protocol.

(SWORD, “Simple Web-service Offering Repository Deposit”, is a web standard/protocol for allowing remote deposit of items into repositories, and to allow records to be shared between multiple repository-type systems. A project to develop version 2 of SWORD was launched this year. More at: http://swordapp.org/. UKCoRR Technical Officer Nick Sheppard is a big fan of SWORD and has blogged about SWORD v2 on behalf of the committee.)

I also did a bit of a lightning talk/update on the geographical distribution of UKCoRR members, and about using map mashups to display our numbers and UKCoRR’s institutional ‘coverage’. I’ll blog about that separately, soon.

There was also an update from the UKCoRR committee, which included the shock(!) announcement that Huddersfield’s Graham Stone will be stepping down as chair of UKCoRR from the 7th of April 2011. UKCoRR has opened nominations for a new chair (and to confirm that the rest of us would like to continue serving on the committee) via our members’ discussion list…

 ”On behalf of the committee and the members of UKCoRR, I’d like to thank Graham for his time as Chair, and we’re very pleased that he’s going to stay on as a member of UKCoRR.  If you would like an informal discussion about any of these roles please do not hesitate to contact any of the committee members. ”

Very many thanks are due to the University of Salford (particularly to their current Repository Manager Karen Bates), for looking after UKCoRR so well. UKCoRR is a zero-funding organisation, so we’re dependent on the generosity of our members’ parent institutions to take care of us and give us a home from time to time!

RSP Winter School 2011

I was lucky enough to attend the three-day Repositories Support Project Winter School (#rspws11), which this year was held in the impressive surroundings of Armathwaite Hall near Bassenthwaite in the Lake District. As you can see from my photos, it was a real hardship.

The programme included a keynote address by the immensely switched-on Professor Martin Hall, V-c of the University of Salford (and the first UK V-c on Twitter!), which touched on archaeology, museums, data preservation, open access, mobile learning, and the meaning of the modern university. The remaining speakers and discussions over the three days seemed to relate to two main topics:

1. Data preservation and OA to datasets: Max Wilkinson on the work of the British Library and the BL datasets programme (bl.uk/datasets); Miggie Pickton from the University of Northampton about their ‘KeepIt‘ project to preserve university research data.

The consensus about research data seems to be this: don’t rely on your existing processes for your ‘publications’ repository. Keep a clear wall between a publications repository and a data archive. The requirements for describing/cataloguing, preserving, and providing access (sensitive data, etc.) are all just too different for datasets and publications. Also, there seems to be a general agreement that a more national, shared approach is appropriate for datasets than the strongly institutional focus of publication repositories.

2. The options for CRISes and Repositories when gathering data for the REF: presentations from Keith Jeffery; Mark Cox

It slowly emerged that there seem to be at least two different approaches to REF data-preparation that universities are taking: some [generally large, research-intensive universities] are investing heavily in a CRIS (which is impacting on the role of the Repository); others [generally the smaller HEIs, though with notable exceptions] are developing and enhancing their existing Repository systems, and relying on EPrints/DSpace to do more heavy lifting.

Interestingly, there was relatively little talk of e-theses in all this. We did however manage to slip in an advert for the UKCoRR members’ meeting (tomorrow!)

Slides and notes from the various presentations and workshops are available to download from the RSP’s website.

Tweets bearing the Winter School’s hashtag #rspws11 are preserved in a Twapper Keeper archive.

Meanwhile, back home in Lincoln…

And at our regular Repository team meeting on Friday, 18 February. It seems to be a particularly busy time, Repository-wise, at the moment. Welcome to David Young who came to his first Friday team meeting.

Present: Bev Jones (BJ), Paul Stainthorp (PS), Rosaline Smith (RS), David Young (DY).

1. We’ve hit 2,800 items on the Repository, which is a credit to Lincoln’s academic staff, as well as to the tireless efforts of RS and BJ! We’re aiming for 3,000 items by the end of April, 2011. If we hit that target, I’ll be doing some more baking.
2. There are a number of useful training events on at the moment: some organised by the RSP (e.g. this one), as well as this extremely valuable-looking non-RSP event in Glasgow. Many of the events relate in some way to getting data in/out of repositories for REF purposes (c.f. the discussions at the Winter School, above). Unfortunately, Lincoln people aren’t able to attend many of these events, so PS and DY are going to meet to discuss the possibility of running/arranging a similar event in the East Midlands.
3. The group discussed some EPrints tweaks: publisher search, the ability to ‘bounce’ a Repository record from one owner to another, the perennial unique author IDs …all of which are possible and in place in at least one other EPrints repository. We also touched upon our succession/emergency planning (i.e. how would the Library cope if and when the volume of Repository traffic outstrips our resource to deal with it: our “Plan X“.)
4. RS updated us on the Kultivate project: there’s another workshop in London on Monday, 28 February; RS is still planning a meeting with the Faculty of Art, Architecture & Design. RS has issued her final reminder by mass email to academic staff, asking them to attend a Repository workshop or/and to get in touch to discuss depositing their items.
5. BJ reported that all Repository records from the calendar years 2010/2011 (so far) are now identifiable to a quarter. (We need this level of specificity to produce our Quarterly Research Output Reports.) However, there’s still some confusion over exactly how we can construct date-limited queries in EPrints – BJ is going to ask on the eprints_tech and UKCoRR mailing lists to see if we can get a definitive answer.
6. Now-quite-finally, I (PS) ran through a number of things I’m going to bring to the next Repository steering group: including technical developments and where we might need to take EPrints in the run-up to the REF, as well as improving the Repository’s presence on our corporate website. I’m also going to speak to the chair of the steering group (University Librarian, Ian Snowley) about the date of the next meeting.
7. Did I mention it’s the UKCoRR meeting tomorrow?