The "technologies"

Web feeds (RSS 1.0, RSS 2.0, Atom)

It is a mean of transmitting and updating news in an automated way.

http://annonc.oxfordjournals.org/rss/current.xml

OPML (Outline Processor Markup Language)

It is an outline or list of arbitrary elements, mainly web feeds.

http://feeds.sciencedirect.com/opml.xml

APIs (Application Programming Interface(s))

An API is an interface used by a software to interact with other software.
 
APIs from Web of Science, Scopus , SerialsSolutions, etc.
RSS & OPML feeds => JournalTOCs API

Mashup

Originally used in pop-music when two songs were remixed and played at the same time.

 
In web applications a mashup is based on making use of APIs.

 
A Mashup Ecosystem

The experiments

We will use the JOURNALTOCs API
URL base: https://www.journaltocs.ac.uk/api

 

It is free

It covers almost all the journals currently producing RSS feeds (over 14,000)

It's just simple & easy-to-use RSS

Papers come directly from the publisher ASAP "straight from the horse's mouth!"

First experiment

Re-using Journal TOC RSS feeds

to alert an Institutional Repository (IR) manager when papers published by authors from her institution have been published

"Give me new content for my repository please"
One

 

• First experiment is not a real mashup
   
  
   
   
• https://www.journaltocs.ac.uk/api/articles/Warwick University
  RSS ==> EasyDeposit (a PHP front-end to SWORD)
   
•  

Second experiment

Filtering Journal TOCs for an academic library

"Give me only the latest papers for which I always have free full-text access"

Two

• Second experiment is a mahsup using three APIs
   
  

It's being done with the Heriot Watt University Library

Second experiment

Pattern of the URL request sent to JournalTOCs API:
 
https://www.journaltocs.ac.uk/api/articles/QUERY_STRING?output=json
(which is not real json yet!)
 

Example:
Example

https://www.journaltocs.ac.uk/api/articles/corrosion metals
 

https://www.journaltocs.ac.uk/api/heriotWatt/corrosion metals
 

https://www.journaltocs.ac.uk/api/HeriotWatt/corrosion metals?output=json
 

http://www.hw.ac.uk/library/wattJournals.php
 

(Run above links. If they work, we're done!)

More experiments using journal TOC RSS feeds

 
A quick Peer-Reviewed Journals Search done by Roy Tennant from OCLC:

http://roytennant.com/proto/peer
 

A generator of journal OPML feeds done by Scott Wilson from CETIS:

http://jopml.org
 

Searching the recent previous issues stored in the journalTOCs Directory:

http://www.hw.ac.uk/library/wattJournals.php
 

Providing a subject based current awareness search service by TechXtra:

http://www.techxtra.ac.uk/techtocs
 

More experiments using journal TOC RSS feeds

Including Journal TOCs into a library OPAC
 

http://webquery.blogspot.com/2009/03/rss-services-from-journals-in-library.html
 

http://www.exlibrisgroup.org/display/AlephCC/JournalTOCs-API+...
 

your mashup here!

 
What about using Journal OPML feeds?

Handling transfer of journal titles is still problematic for librarians (example)

Journal OPML feeds can be extremely useful to notify librarians when a new journal has been published, a journal has been transferred to another publisher or cancelled.

Springer do not have a public Journal OPML feeds yet

Conclusions

 
Academic librarians should pay more attention to Journal OPML and TOC RSS feeds produced by publishers.

A lot is about imaginative ways for aggregating and reusing OPML and TOC RSS feeds in academic libraries.

Mashups with Journal OPML and TOC RSS feeds are easy to create.

Sometimes a simple "pipe" can make a difference.

Conclusions

Journal OPML and TOC RSS feeds
can give your users immediate access to newly published papers
 
"straight from the horse's mouth!"

Conclusions

 
Free OPML & RSS feeds-based mashups can complement, supplement and enhance products provided by library system vendors.
 

Conclusions

There are still various issues with the RSS feeds produced by publishers which impact on the ability of using effectively those feeds.

 
In despite of those issues, journal OPML and TOC RSS feeds are still very useful sources of information and with a lot of potential.

Good TOC RSS feeds are good for everybody (publishers, aggregators, librarians, researchers, etc.)

A good TOC RSS feed (from one of the Top Journals in the World)

 
Publisher: "OK!, but what is a good TOC RSS feeds anyway?"

Easy peasy! Just follow these CrossRef guidelines

Adios

 
Questions? Comments?

You can reach me by email:

S.Chumbe@hw.ac.uk

Follow the progress of JournalTOCs Project at:

https://www.journaltocs.ac.uk/blog

 
 
Thank you!