Repository
The Texas ETD Repository
The Texas Digital Library, a cooperative organization of institutions of higher learning in Texas, will develop and implement the Texas ETD Repository, a state-wide system for managing the entire life-cycle of electronic theses and dissertations (ETDs) from initial submission to final publication. This project represents a partnership among academic institutions in the second most populous state in the U.S. and the nation’s third most proficient producer of Ph.D.s. By enhancing previous technologies and developing new technologies to fill unmet needs, the Texas ETD Repository will address all aspects of ETD management, including the submission and workflow processes, digital rights management, discoverability, and long-term preservation.
There is a significant need for a state-wide ETD initiative in Texas. Although there are thirty four Ph.D. granting institutions in the state, only six universities in Texas are members of the Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations (NDLTD). Only three TDL universities (The University of Texas at Austin, Texas A&M University, and Texas Tech University) have implemented ETD systems. If the ETD movement continues to grow organically with the adoption of ETD systems on a campus-by-campus basis, the rate of adoption will be slow and uncoordinated, and could result in multiple incompatible systems. By developing a state-wide plan, the TDL can leverage its resources to develop new and innovative technologies while coordinating the development of an interoperable, state-wide ETD system that can serve as a model for other states and/or countries.
The Texas ETD Repository will utilize Manakin, a new XML-based framework for DSpace, to customize the user interfaces of the repository. This will allow branding at the item level, making identification of the institution at which a particular thesis or dissertation was produced possible. This is an essential feature of a state-wide ETD repository.
Further, Manakin allows for the development of new features for DSpace repositories. Using this, the Texas Digital Library will develop new tools for managing the ETD submission, the review process, publication, cataloging, storage, and retrieval.
Finally, based on existing network infrastructures in the state and utilizing the geographically diverse locations of its member institutions, TDL will develop a robust preservation network. This network will comply with Trusted Digital Repository and OAIS specifications.
The Texas Digital Library (TDL) will achieve these goals through the enhancement of open source software and the utilization of open standards. This model will encourage an unprecedented level of access to ETDs through multiple strategies, including open access publishing and the dissemination of metadata to multiple discovery services, such as web search engines, scholarly portals, library catalogs, and reference linking systems.
