Spokes software

 

The Spokes software is essentially the same as the main Archives Hub software, providing you with a scaled-down version of the Hub for your own institution.

The search engine, Cheshire for Archives, provides a highly functional database of EAD encoded archival finding aids. It includes a number of sophisticated searching options via the web front-end as well as tools to manage your database via an administration interface.

Web Interface

The Spokes software provides you with a customisable Web Interface, for users to search and discover your archive collections. This provides all of the same functionality as the main Archives Hub.

Administration Interface

The Administration Interface provides a user-friendly way to manage your Spoke. You can add, update and remove descriptions and then rebuild the database. You can also access statistics showing how your catalogue is being used and which descriptions are most popular.  

EAD Editor

The Spokes software comes with the Hub’s own EAD Editor, enabling you to create new descriptpions and edit current descriptions. The Editor also facilitates the creation of multi-level descriptions. The basic template is a simple form, and you can view the EAD if you wish to do so, or view the description as it would look once it is live in your system.
Once you are happy with your descriptions you can easily submit them to be included in your database.

Access to Content

As well as the Web Interface provided for users to search and retrieve descriptions, the Spoke exposes your data via web services, which are protocols to enable remote searching of the data:

• SRU Search/Retrieve via URL (link)
• Z39.50 (link)
• OAI-PMH Open Archives Initiative Protocol for Metadata Harvesting (link)

 

Benefits of new Spokes software, version 3.5
(released Dec 2010)

Available at: http://www.cheshire3.org/download/ead/

For Spoke institutions on version 3.4:
* Live browse preview and auto display record for single hit
(streamlines user journey)
* Improved date searching
* Bug fixes for some problem characters

For Spoke institutions on older versions of the software:
* Faceted search
* Addition of EAD Editor
* Ajax employed for slicker user interface response

If you are already running version 3.4.x then the upgrade
process is significantly eaiser. There's a single script to
upgrade Cheshire3, and then just install cheshire3-ead
over the top of the old one, available from the download
page as update.sh.