Community, Cohesion, and Commitment: Developing and Deploying Open Source Tools in the UVa Online Library Environment

The University of Virginia Library is a key partner in the collaborative project known as “Hydra”; the goal of the Hydra Project is to create a comprehensive set of open source repository workflow tools that allow librarians and scholars to manage describe, deliver, reuse and preserve digital information. U.Va.’s commitment to the project includes the definition of metadata standards, the creation of search and discovery interfaces, and the development and implementation of multiple Hydra “heads” such as the interface and workflow in use for the U.Va. institutional repository. This talk will provide a brief overview of the Hydra Project and the tools under development, describe some of the processes and challenges for development teams working within a library setting, discuss the value of having a Digital Humanities R&D group (the Scholars’ Lab) embedded in this same setting, and the types of “alt-ac” positions, roles, and responsibilities that can be found in this environment.

Speakers

Julie Meloni
Chief Architect of the Online Library EnvironentUniversity of Virginia

Julie Meloni is the Chief Architect of the Online Library Environent at the University of Virginia Library. Engaged in the design and development of web-based application since 1994, the bulk of her work occured in the private sector, where her responsibilities ranged from enterprise-grade application planning, design, and development, to system administration and user interface and user experience consultation. Since 2000, she has authored more than fifteen editions of texts for Sams Publishing, covering numerous topics in web application development, applications, and programming languages. She also completed a PhD in English from Washington State University in 2010, with an emphasis on nineteenth-century American Literature and History of the Book.