DLXS Requirements--Getting Started

The DLXS Prospectus is an important starting point for the program, but having already read the Prospectus, you may need a practical guide on the steps that you should take.

  1. Contract: Contract: DLXS licenses a search engine and support (primarily middleware and training), entailing both one-time and annual costs. Contracts always have a few wrinkles for every organization, so it's a good idea to start this process as soon as possible.
  2. Server: You'll need hardware to run DLXS resources. Currently, our implementations are designed entirely for UNIX environments. A list of supported server hardware and operating systems is provided as part of the DLXS Prospectus.
  3. Disk space: Disk space needs are extremely variable, depending on what you want to accomplish. For example, if you were interested only in mounting large collections of finding aids, you could probably rely entirely on the remaining internal disk space of any UNIX server without making any additional purchases. At the other end of the spectrum, large page-image based collections like MOA, or large collections of continuous tone images such as those in DLPS Image Services consume large quantities of disk space. For reference purposes, we have provided a Collection Sizes table for approximate figures on file space consumption for a variety of collections.)
  4. Configuration: The Prospectus section on Supported Environments also contains information about additional software needed and configuration.
  5. Collections/Content: Historically, in the SGML Server Program, Michigan has been able to provide institutions not only with working middleware, but with indexed versions of the collections. We have done this in cooperation with publishers such as Chadwyck-Healey. For the indefinite future, we will continue to offer this service at no additional cost in the DLXS. The collections for which we have working middleware and indexed content can be found online at http://www.dlxs.org/products/supportedcollections.html (a more specific listing designed for this purpose should be made available later). In order to receive content in one of the listed collections prepared for DLXS middleware, you will need to request a letter from your sales representative like the example provided online here. Writing and sending these letters is relatively pro forma for publishers like Chadwyck-Healey. Original letters on letterhead should be sent to John Weise at:

    Digital Library Production Service
    300 Hatcher North
    University of Michigan
    Ann Arbor, MI
    48109-1205

  6. What else? Help us to help everyone better by giving suggestions for this page. We want to keep it brief and to the point, however, so don't go suggesting that people need to get an education in library science before they start! ;) We have found that at nearly two dozen institutions, the DLXS resources are practically plug-and-play. If you've done steps 1-5 and are interested in collections that have already been treated through DLXS, we should be able to send you a collection of files that install and are usable in a fraction of a day.

Institutions that are currently members of the SGML Server Program should contact DLXS Info for information on DLXS .

 

For more information about DLXS, please send email to DLXS Info or contact John Weise at 734.764-8074.