VuFind
Encyclopedia
VuFind is an open source
Open source
The term open source describes practices in production and development that promote access to the end product's source materials. Some consider open source a philosophy, others consider it a pragmatic methodology...

 library search engine that allows users to search and browse beyond the resources of a traditional OPAC
OPAC
An Online Public Access Catalog is an online database of materials held by a library or group of libraries...

. Developed by Villanova University
Villanova University
Villanova University is a private university located in Radnor Township, a suburb northwest of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in the United States...

, version 1.0 was released in July 2010 after two years in beta.

VuFind operates with a simple, Google-like interface and offers flexible keyword searching. While most commonly used for searching catalog records, VuFind can be extended to search other library resources including but not limited to: locally cached journals, digital library items, and institutional repository and bibliography. The software is also modular and highly configurable, allowing implementers to choose system components to best fit their needs.

A few libraries and institutions running and testing VuFind include Georgia Tech, the London School of Economics
London School of Economics
The London School of Economics and Political Science is a public research university specialised in the social sciences located in London, United Kingdom, and a constituent college of the federal University of London...

, the National Library of Ireland
National Library of Ireland
The National Library of Ireland is Ireland's national library located in Dublin, in a building designed by Thomas Newenham Deane. The Minister for Arts, Sport & Tourism is the member of the Irish Government responsible for the library....

, Yale University
Yale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...

, and the DC Public Library.

Features

VuFind offers a number of features that enhance usability:
  • Faceted search results that allow users to narrow items by format, call number, language, author, genre, era, region, and more
  • Suggested resources and searches
  • Browsing capability
  • Personal organization and annotation of resources through favorites lists, texting, e-mailing, tagging, and commenting features
  • Persistent URLs
  • APA or MLA citations
  • Author biographies
  • Multi-language capability with translations available in Brazilian Portuguese, Chinese, Dutch, English, French, German, Japanese, Spanish, and more

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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