D-Net Software Kit
Description
The D-Net Software Kit creates a network of repositories that share the infrastructure services necessary to process and provide access to digital content. Designed to minimise development and maintenance costs, the software allows research communities to cross-operate over the metadata records from many data sources, effectively integrating the content from each repository.
Provider
Developed as part of the DRIVER and DRIVERII projects
Licensing and cost
Apache License - free
Development activity
D-NET version 1.2 was released in March 2011. The website references features that will be developed as part of the OpenAIREplus project, with a deadline of 2013.
Platform and interoperability
All documentation presumes an Ubuntu Linux running environment. The software is downloaded and installed using apt-get via the command line, and requires Python, the Java 6 JDK, and MongoDB.
Functional notes
A D-NET infrastructure is operated and administrated by a responsible organization (RO) and used by a number of participating organizations (POs). POs can join the infrastructure to offer and share their services, functionality and content or to use services provided by other POs. The RO is responsible for admitting new POs and supporting them in the construction and configuration of their applications. D-NET uses a service-oriented framework, which allows repositories to select and combine the data services they need into customised data processing workflows. The services are organized in five main areas: Data Mediation, Data Mapping, Data Storage and Indexing, Data Curation and Enrichment, and Data Provision. The services are mapped and linked across the POs via an Enabling Area. As a control mechanism, D-NET Services are accessible through a single point of access, which requires a key.
Documentation and user support
Formal documentation consists of an installation guide; however, a number of the sections are incomplete. The website itself offers an overview of the general concepts and system architecture. The site also lists one email address, presumably for one of the developers.
Usability
D-Net is designed to serve as an underlying infrastructure, and so end-user experience is dependent on the access platform chosen for the repository.
Expertise required
Installation and configuration require experience with command-line interfaces, and solid knowledge of application design and technologies.
Standards compliance
D-Net uses XML throughout the system. Security mechanisms are provided according to the Access Control Markup Language standard (XACML). OAI-PMH and SRW/CQL are supported as standard APIs to import and export content in a D-NET infrastructure.
Influence and take-up
The software advertises approximately 40 service instances running over nine hosts.
User Experiences
Development Activity