[Sagreenstone] Report on DITCHE Library Event in Port Elizabeth

[Stephen Visagie]

Dear Colleagues,

As previously mentioned, I was to do a Greenstone presentation at the 
DITCHE Library Event, which was held in Port Elizabeth from 19 - 21 May 
2008. The presentation went well, and was well received. Thanks once 
again to the folks from Malawi and Tanzania who sent me details of their 
Greenstone projects, it was good to be able to add regional content.

Basically, I introduced the participants to Greenstone, explaining what 
it was, how it was developed, and how easy it is to use and publish. I 
gave them examples from all around the world, as well as the region. I 
also explained the one-year project, the reasoning about it, and the 
workshops held in Namibia, Malawi, Lesotho and Zimbabwe.

I took the latest versions of Greenstone (both Windows and Linux), plus 
all the manuals and other documentation, with me on my memory stick. 
Luckily I was presenting on the first day, and at the end of my 
presentation offered anyone who was interested the opportunity to borrow 
my memory stick and copy all the data onto their own laptops. This was 
well received, as my memory stick must have circulated to at least a 
third of the participants!

Importantly, there are some interesting Greenstone projects happening in 
South Africa, other than at the University of KwaZulu Natal. Rhodes 
Library did a nice presentation of how they developed a Greenstone 
digital library with sound clips of African traditional music from all 
over the continent - financially supported by DISA. It looks to be a 
most valuable Library. I don't have the URL with me now, as the DITCHE 
presentations must still be placed online, but I'm sure if you Google 
the Library of Rhodes University, you should be able to find it.

I am encouraged by the positive response I got, and also by the 
improving acceptance of Open Source Software in general, e.g. Moodle, 
AJAX and others. It is worth noting the majority of the University 
Libraries represented already use DSpace, or intend setting up an 
Institutional Repository using DSpace in the near future.

Best Regards,
Stephen Visagie
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