[Metadatalibrarians] Crosswalks

[Joe Altimus]

Others have mentioned lots of good resources for XSLT. Another source for
how-do-I-do-this-with-XSLT or why-is-my-XSLT-doing-this questions is the
XSL-List maintained by Mulberry Technologies (see
http://www.mulberrytech.com/xsl/xsl-list/ for subscription info). That list
is for any questions relating to XSL, XSLT, XPath, XSL-FO. Novices, experts
and anyone in between is welcome there.

Be warned that there are typically hundreds of messages per month. There is
an archive of that list at http://www.biglist.com/lists/xsl-list/archives/
I've often found answers to my questions there (sometimes with considerable
fumbling to find the right search terms or scrolling around results).

Joe Altimus
Arizona State University Libraries

On Thu, Aug 14, 2008 at 3:23 PM, Nancy Fallgren <
nfallgr1 at jhuadig.admin.jhu.edu> wrote:

> Yeah, the Kay books assume much more knowledge than I've got.  But they
> aren't intended for beginners.
>
> And I agree with Tim that the XSLT 2.0 Cookbook is very useful - but I
> needed a foundation before it really kicked in for me.
>
> For a foundation, I thought the O'Reilly XSLT 1st edition was REALLY easy
> to comprehend and it is usually where I start.  I recently bought the 2nd
> edition (came out in July) for XSLT 2.0, but the organization seems weird
> and it hasn't been as useful so far (though Amazon gives it 5 stars).
>  Although the first edition is really for XSLT 1.0, the underlying
> explanations/theory have been applicable in 2.0 too.
>
> The other XSLT reference I like is Jeni Tennison's Beginning XSLT 2.0.  I
> tend to use the Cookbook, O'Reilly 1, and Tennison in combination.
>
> Also, I've gotten some good help with problematic/complicated
> transformations from samples and links  here:
> http://www.dpawson.co.uk/xsl/sect2/sect21.html  Finally, I have to plug
> Erin
>
> Tim, the Amigos course looks like it provides a great foundation!  Thanks
> for the link.
>
> - Nancy
>
> >>> "Bolam, Michael R" <mrbst20 at pitt.edu> 8/14/2008 1:35 PM >>>
> Nancy,
>
> I've found the same thing to be true.
>
> I mostly "borrow" from the Library of Congress MARCXML transformation
> scripts then change the output to meet my needs. For example, I don't want
> MODS, I need a TEI-header appropriate for DLXS, so I swap out the MODS stuff
> for the DLSX/TEI stuff and run it. So far, so good, but I'd like to be
> better at working from scratch when necessary.
>
> I keep a copy of Kay's XSLT Programmer's Reference on my desk, for
> reference purposes, but I'm thinking a more user friendly training text to
> go along with it. Any recommendations?
>
> Mike
>
>
> --
> Michael R. Bolam
> Metadata Librarian for Digital Production
> Digital Research Library
> University Library System
> University of Pittsburgh
> 7500 Thomas Blvd., Room 306
> Pittsburgh, PA 15260
> -----Original Message-----
> From: metadatalibrarians-bounces at lists.monarchos.com [mailto:
> metadatalibrarians-bounces at lists.monarchos.com] On Behalf Of Nancy
> Fallgren
> Sent: Thursday, August 14, 2008 1:28 PM
> To: 'A listserv for Metadata Librarians'
> Subject: Re: [Metadatalibrarians] Crosswalks
>
> Hi Mike,
>
> I'm also looking for reasonably priced XSLT training, but it seems to
> always be incorporated as one of many topics in XML courses or is a high
> priced 2 day workshop that is not geared toward librarians (while I can live
> with the business applications, the cost can be ridiculous).  Meanwhile,
> I've developed quite a library of XSLT books and am self-teaching . . . so I
> also have LOTS of failed scripts, heavily commented, for transformations
> that didn't work as I thought they should.
>
> I'd really like to have a "library" of XSLT scripts used by metadata
> librarians, so we can share/pool our scripts, re-use bits and pieces as
> needed, and share tips.
>
> - Nancy
>
>
> Nancy Fallgren
> Digital Access/Metadata Librarian
> Milton S. Eisenhower Library
> Johns Hopkins University
> 3400 N. Charles St.
> Baltimore, MD  21218
> nfallgren at jhu.edu
> phone: 410-516-7757
>
>
> >>> "Bolam, Michael R" <mrbst20 at pitt.edu> 8/14/2008 1:13 PM >>>
> Teressa,
>
> I'd like to second/third/fourth MarcEdit. It's a great tool. It was very
> helpful for me to be able to see the before & after of the transformations.
>
> I've found it helpful to think of crosswalks as a sort of "road map"
> between two metadata schema. You still need the car, bike, or bus to get you
> from one place to the other. XSLT can be that vehicle. It allows you to
> transform your data from one schema to the other. The Crosswalk provides the
> "directions", in a sense.
>
> On a related topic, does anyon have any recommendations for XSLT training
> opportunities for Metadata librarians? I have a basic understanding and have
> been generating simple transformations or modifying more complex stylesheets
> to meet our needs locally. I'd like to become an XSLT "expert".
>
> Mike
>
>
> --
> Michael R. Bolam
> Metadata Librarian for Digital Production Digital Research Library
> University Library System University of Pittsburgh 7500 Thomas Blvd., Room
> 306 Pittsburgh, PA 15260 -----Original Message-----
> From: metadatalibrarians-bounces at lists.monarchos.com [mailto:
> metadatalibrarians-bounces at lists.monarchos.com] On Behalf Of Timothy
> Lepczyk
> Sent: Thursday, August 14, 2008 12:43 PM
> To: A listserv for Metadata Librarians
> Subject: Re: [Metadatalibrarians] Crosswalks
>
> Hi Teressa,
>
> Using xslt is a great way to transform your records from one metadata
> format to another.  If you're not familiar with it there are resources
> online www.w3schools.com/xsl/ as well as books and workshops.
>
> Best,
>
> Tim
>
>
>
> Timothy A. Lepczyk
> Metadata Librarian
> Digital Library Services
> Washington University Libraries
> Campus Box 1061
> One Brookings Drive
> St. Louis, MO 63130
>
> Tel: 314.935.8934
> Email: tlepczyk at wustl.edu
>
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: metadatalibrarians-bounces at lists.monarchos.com [mailto:
> metadatalibrarians-bounces at lists.monarchos.com] On Behalf Of Keenan,
> Teressa
> Sent: Thursday, August 14, 2008 9:18 AM
> To: A listserv for Metadata Librarians
> Subject: [Metadatalibrarians] Crosswalks
>
> Hi everyone;
>
> I am new to metadata librarianship. Though I've been lurking on this list
> for a while. I officially start my new position as a metadata/digital
> projects librarian on September 1st.  I am very excited about actually
> putting my education to use in the real world.  I have a question that I
> hope isn't too silly and that someone here on this list can point me in the
> right direction.
>
> We learned a bit about crosswalks in library school.  Basically we either
> read about or set up tables that show which elements are equivalent to each
> other, but the one thing we didn't cover was how this actually happens.  So
> if a person wanted to take MARC records from their local ILS and transform
> them into DC, how would they do that?  I am assuming that this isn't only
> done manually with someone physically keying in (or copying and pasting) the
> information into a form.  Is there some literature out there someplace that
> explains or describes the process?  Has anyone actually done this in real
> life and not just in a classroom on paper?
>
> I realize I haven't even officially started my new job yet; but I have a
> feeling that this is going to be a topic that comes up very soon so I'd like
> to learn as much as possible.
>
> Thanks in advance for any tips you all can send my way.
>
>
> Teressa M. Keenan
> Library Technician - Bibliographic Management Services (until 08/31/08)
> Metadata/Digital Productions Librarian (after 09/1/08) Maureen and Mike
> Mansfield Library The University of Montana
> 32 Campus Drive (MMLA01)
> Missoula, MT 59812-9936
> teressa.keenan at umontana.edu , (406) 243-6862
>
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