Greenstone Digital Library Software

GSDL is an open-source software that helps you to build a highly customizable digital repository.

1. DIGITAL LIBRARYSOFTWARE
GREENSTONE

2. INTRODUCTION
Adigitallibrary,alsocalledanonlinelibrary,aninternetlibrary,adigitalrepository,oradigitalcollectionis
anonlinedatabaseofdigitalobjects.Inadditiontostoringcontent,digitallibrariesprovidemeansfororganizing,
searching,andretrievingthecontentcontainedinthecollection.
Therearetwoprimarytypesofdigitalrepository:institutionalanddisciplinary.Adisciplinaryrepositoryisanonline
archivecontainingworksordataassociatedwiththeseworksofscholarsinaparticularsubjectarea.Institutional
repositoriesareapopularformofdigitallibraryandarecollectionsofinstitutionspecificresources.Thatis
institutionalrepositoriesareakindofinstitutionalintellectualproductivityoftheresearchscholarswithinan
organisationthatarecollected,organisedandaccessedviacomputernetwork.Ofthemanyopensourcesystems
fordigitallibraries,twoofthemostprominentareGreenstoneandDSpace.
ThedigitallibrarysystemsGreenstoneandDSpaceaspiretomakeiteasyforotherstobuildtheirowndigital
librariesthatoffercomprehensiveservicestousers-readers,authorsandlibrarians.EventhoughGreenstoneis
olderandmoreestablishedinternationally.

3. GREENSTONE
Developer:DepartmentofComputerScienceintheUniversityofWaikato,NewZealand,withUNESCOaspartof
its‘InformationforAll’programandtheHumanInfoNGOinBelgium.
TheGreenstonesoftwareisacollaborativeeffortbetweenmanypeople.RodgerMcNabandStefanBoddiearethe
principalarchitectsandimplementors.
Softwareforbuildinganddistributingdigitallibrarycollections-notadigitallibrarybutatoolforbuildingdigital
libraries.
Comprehensivesystemforconstructingandpresentingcollectionsofdocuments,includingtext,images,audioand
video.
ItprovidesanewwayoforganizinginformationandpublishingitontheInternetoronCD-ROMintheformofafully-
searchable,metadata-drivendigitallibrary.Itcanalsoberuninanon-networkedenvironment(standalone),operating
fromremovablemediasuchasaUSBFlashDriveandDVD.
Open-source,multilingualsoftware,issuedunderthetermsoftheGNUGeneralPublicLicense.Ithasanactiveopen
sourcedevelopercommunity.Beingopensource,Greenstoneisreadilyextensible,andbenefitsfromtheinclusionof
GNU-licensedmodulesforfull-textretrieval,databasemanagement,andtextextractionfromproprietarydocument
formats.

4. GREENSTONE
❖
❖
❖
WHAT GREENSTONE IS NOT

6. History
GREENSTONE
Digital library of Computer Science Technical Reports1995May
Began work with Human Info NGO to produce humanitarian CD-ROMs1997
Decision to use the GPL; name Greenstone adopted1997
First CD-ROM collection released:Humanity Development Library1998 Apr
Greenstone.org website established1998 Aug
BBC collection established1999 Dec
Greenstone mailing list started2000 Apr
Formally established cooperative effort with UNESCO and Human Info NGO2000 Aug

7. History
GREENSTONE
Tokipresented to the NZ Digital Library project on behalf of the entireMāoripeople2000Nov
Begin to distribute software on SourceForge2000 Nov
Development of theCollector2001
First UNESCO Greenstone CD-ROM2002Jun
Begin development of the Greenstone Librarian Interface2002
Official opening of the Niupepacollection2002 Mar
Began development of Greenstone32002 Apr

8. History
GREENSTONE
Begin development of the Greenstone Translator’s Interface2003Nov
DL Consulting incorporated2003 Jun
IFIP Namur award2004 Jan
Greenstone distributed with FAO’sInformation Management Resource Kit2005Feb
Initial release of Greenstone32005 Nov
Greenstone Support Group for South Asia launched2006 Apr
Finalist for the Stockholm Challenge2006 May
Greenstone distributed with IITE's courseDigital Libraries in Education2007

9. History
GREENSTONE

10. Aim
GREENSTONE
International Training
According to Greenstonewebsite (www.greenstone.org), “The aim of the software is to
empower users, particularly in universities, libraries, and other public service institutions, to
build their own digital libraries. Digital libraries are radically reforming how information is
disseminated and acquired in UNESCO's partner communities and institutions in the fields of
education, science and culture around the world, and particularly in developing countries. We
hope that this software will encourage the effective deployment of digital libraries to share
information and place it in the public domain.”
Training is a bottleneck for widespread adoption of any digital library software.
With UNESCO’s encouragement and sponsorship Greenstone have worked to enable
developing countries to take advantage of digital library technology by running hands-on workshops.
Many Greenstone workshops have been given in developing countries.

11. Versions
GREENSTONE
Greenstone 2 Greenstone 3
Greenstone2waswritteninC++.Greenstone3isacompleteredesign
andreimplementationoftheoriginalGreenstonedigitallibrary
softwarewhichisdevelopedin2000(Greenstone2).Itincorporates
allthefeaturesoftheprevioussoftware,andisbackwardscompatible.
Animport'Greenstone2collection'featureisprovidedinthe
GreenstoneLibrarianInterface(GLI)toassistinthetransitiontothe
newsoftwareforexistingusers.Greenstone3iswritteninJavaand
takesadvantageofmanywebtechnologies.Muchofthe
documentationissimilaroridenticalforthetwomajorversions.This
makesthedigitallibrarysoftwarehighlycustomizableandextensible
inthefunctionalityitdelivers.Greenstone3isunderactive
development,andisrecommendedfordownload.
Digital Library
Software

12. Software Requirements
GREENSTONE
Server is platform
independent: OS
Windows/Linux/Sola
ris/MAC
Apache web
server/IIS
PERL: Installed
automatically
Java 2 Runtime
Environment (J2RE):
Version 1.4 or
above required for
Greenstone
Librarian Interface
(GLI) and must be
installed before
installing Greenstone

13. Software Requirements
GREENSTONE
Web browsers: For
Readers to access
digital
library/collections
(eg.Internet
Explorer)
ImageMagick:
Needed in order to
build image
collections
C++ compiler:
Needed only if you
wish to compile the
source code (Visual
Studio or GCC)
Greenstone
Digital Library
Software

16. Steps for Installation
GREENSTONE
Onceinstallationiscompleted,tostartGreenstonesystemclickontheStartbutton,opentheProgrammenu,and
selectGreenstoneDigitalLibrary.Thisbringsyouadialoguebox:justclickEnterLibrary.Thisautomaticallystarts
yourInternetbrowserandloadstheGreenstoneDigitalLibraryhomepage
After installing
J2RE, go for
GSDL folder
choose setup
gsdl2.70.
Accept all the
terms of
license
agreement by
clicking on
button.
Choose the
type of
installation
(Local Library).
Install the Java
2 Runtime
Environment
(latest
version).
The Install
Shield Wizard
will begin the
installation of
GSDL
software.
Click .
Choose setup
Language.
English (US) is
the default.
Set the admin
password.

17. Advantages
GREENSTONE
It is based on FOSS platform and has active community supporting it.
Easy to install
Easily customisable
Supports multiple languages: In User/Reader Interface and In Librarian Interface
Practical GLI interface for editing/managing GSDL.
Access controls: Password protection at document/collection level

18. Advantages
GREENSTONE
It is Multi-platform application and can run on various operating system platforms,
including Windows (any version), Linux, Sun Solaris, and Mac OSX. It is available
in both binary (executable) and source code form for the Windows (all versions), Linux, and Mac
OS X operating systems and in source code form for other operating systems (Unix).
A Greenstone Collection can be served on the World Wide Web or it can be
exported to a CD-ROM and accessed from the CD-ROM or local hard disc
without the need for Internet connectivity.
It uses Perl-scripting, MG(PP) or Lucene for indexing,
Apache (or built-in webserver), XML,whichare proven technologies.
UNICODE compliant facilitating building, searching and browsing documents
in any Unicode-compliant language.

19. Advantages
GREENSTONE
Large Technical Support Base:
• Documentation On Greenstone Site: Manuals, Demo collections, Wiki,TutorialExercises, FAQs
• Online Help in: User Interface, Librarian Interface
• Mailing Lists: Global Greenstone Users’ List-For general discussions about Greenstone,
Greenstone Developers’ List-For discussions about development of Greenstone, etc
Greenstone lets you build collections of multimedia documents
such as audio, video, and pictures accompanied by textual description
or metadata to allow searching and browsing.
Supports several metadata sets
Customisable metadata: Includes metadata editor

20. Advantages
GREENSTONE
Separate modules are available for different uses:
–JAVA-based interface for management –Web-browser based access to collections
–CLI client : remote collection building.
Plug-ins for most document formats also available as well as
for crosswalks for ISIS, Dspace, e-mails, MARC, MARCXML.
Greenstone can build indexes from full text documents and also metadata
associated with these documents. It supports creation of indexes for
various metadata fields, either automatically extracted or manually assigned.

21. Technical Features of GREENSTONE
METADATA FORMATS
INTERFACES
INTEROPERABILITY
MULTIPLATFORM USER FRIENDLY APPLICATION
DOCUMENT FORMATS
LANGUAGES

22. New Zealand Digital Library Projecthttp://nzdl.org
A demonstration site set up by the developers of Greenstone, the
New Zealand Digital Library Project. This site contains many
collections, ranging from humanitarian information to computer
science technical reports to demonstration collections of Chinese
and Arabic documents. They exemplify various searching and
browsing options, and include collections in Arabic, Chinese,
French, Maori, and Spanish, as well as English. There are also
some music collections. Uses Greenstone2.
Agricultural Technology Transfer Society (ATTS)
ATTS is a non-governmental organization accredited by the
Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs in the Sudan according to the
work permit No.2234 dated January 21st 2009.
The Lincoln Archives Digital Project
The Lincoln Archives Digital project, launched in 2002, is working to
provide all executive, legislative, judicial, and military federal records,
currently housed in the National Archives of the United States, which
were created during the presidential administration of Abraham Lincoln,
to the global community.
The records are organized as if virtually within the Archives, and
provides an opportunity for related records to link, in a matter of seconds,
i.e. photographs, maps, political cartoons, and documents.
Examples

23. INTERFACES OF GREENSTONE
USER/Reader interface
Greenstone User/Reader Interface
The DL user’s view of the collections
Accessible via any Web browser
Multilingual support (available in +30 Languages)
The Depositor: allows Users to add
documents to collections via the User Interface
Search:
❑Collection Searching
❑Document Browsing by specific metadata fields
❑Presentation of Search Results
Highly customizable

24. USER/Reader interface
INTERFACES OF GREENSTONE
Default interface customised Interface

25. INTERFACES OF GREENSTONE
Librarian Interface
Greenstone Librarian Interface
Interactive Graphical Interface used by
Librarians
To build/maintain collections
Easy to use
Available in English, French, Spanish, and
Russian
Java based
Includes a Metadata editor
Remote management of collections via
Remote GLI

26. INTERFACES OF GREENSTONE
Functions
Download files/web pages for your collection
Gather source files from your local machine
Enrich content with metadata
Design searching & browsing facilities
Create (or build) the collection
Format the output of your collection
Index & Indexer
To determine users queries on collection, there
are three things to consider:
❑Thesearchindexer:MG,MGPP&Lucene
❑The search index(es): to specify which parts of
the text are searchable
❑The partition index(es): to split your collection
into subsections for search purposes
Librarian interface

27. INTERFACES OF GREENSTONE
Greenstone Translator’s Interface
Greenstone supports multilingual interface.
Through the preferences setting, the user can
change the language of the Greenstone interface.
It can also support indexing and searching of
document collections in non-Latin scripts.
Multilingual interface

28. Greenstoneisasemi-preciousstonethat(likethissoftware)issourcedinNewZealand.
IntraditionalMaorisocietyitwasthemosthighlyprizedandsoughtafterofall
substances.Itcanabsorbandholdwairua,whichisaspiritorlifeforce,andisendowed
withtraditionalvirtuesthatmakeitanappropriateemblemforapublic-domaindigital
libraryproject.Itslustreshowscharity;itstranslucence,honesty;itstoughness,
courage;andthesharpedgeitcantake,justice.Thecarvedpieceusedinthe
GreenstoneDigitalLibrarySoftwarelogoisapatuorfightingclub,andisafamily
heirloomofoneofourprojectmembers.Inhand-to-handcombatitsdeliveryisvery
quick,veryaccurate,andverycomplete.Weliketothinkthesequalitiesalsoapplytoour
software,therazorsharpedgeofthepatusymbolizingtheleadingedgeoftechnology.
may peace and calmness surround you,
may you reside in the warmth of a summer's haze,
may the ocean of your travels be as smooth as the polished greenstone.

29. Greenstoneisafreelyavailableopen
sourcesoftwareforbuildingand
distributingdigitallibrarycollections
throughInternet.Multiplatform
availability,thecapabilityofproviding
accessindifferentwaysandmanaging
differentfileformats,mediaand
languagesaresomeofthemajor
advantagesofGreenstone.The
LibrarianInterfaceprovidesthemost
advancedandatthesametimeavery
userfriendlyapproachtocollection
buildingandalsometadata
management.
CONCLUSION

30. SEARCH
REFERENCES
SUBJECTS TITLE DATES
(PDF) A bridge between greenstone and DSpace| David Bainbridge, Katherine Don, and Ian Witten -Academia.edu. (n.d.). Retrieved July
31, 2021, from https://www.academia.edu/14592461/A_bridge_between_greenstone_and_DSpace
Bainbridge, D., Osborn, W., Witten, I. H., & Nichols, D. M. (n.d.). Extending Greenstone for Institutional Repositories. Lecture Notes in
Computer Science, 303–312. Retrieved July 31, 2021, from
https://www.academia.edu/26102950/Extending_Greenstone_for_Institutional_Repositories
Digitisation and Digital Libraries-DSpaceand GSDL. (n.d.). Retrieved July 31, 2021, from http://www.gnu.org/licenses/
en:beginner:overview_of_greenstone-Greenstone. (n.d.). Retrieved July 31, 2021, from
http://wiki.greenstone.org/doku.php?id=en:beginner:overview_of_greenstone
Factsheet:: Greenstone Digital Library Software. (n.d.). Retrieved July 31, 2021, from https://www.greenstone.org/factsheet
Greenstone (software) -Wikipedia. (n.d.). Retrieved July 31, 2021, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greenstone_(software)
Greenstone Digital Library Software. (n.d.). Retrieved July 31, 2021, from www.nzdl.org
Greenstone history. (n.d.). Retrieved July 31, 2021, from https://files.greenstone.org/others/Greenstone_history.htm
Institutional repository -Wikipedia. (n.d.). Retrieved July 31, 2021, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Institutional_repository#Software
Kujenga, A. (n.d.). Digital Resource Management: From Data to Knowledge Greenstone Digital Library Software.
Welcome:: Greenstone Digital Library Software. (n.d.). Retrieved July 31, 2021, from https://www.greenstone.org/