The ISIS-software environment

an introduction

Automation of documentary information

Definitions :

information : data with structure and meaning which have the potential to change the receivers knowledge documentary : recorded knowledge, considered worth to be kept on a time- and space-persistent carrier using the computer to optimize management; in documentary systems : mainly retrieval of information

Automation :

Automation of documentary information

D.I. = info kept in documents with a mainly textual contents component variant : documents can also represent real documents : e.g. bibliographic records, with or without abstracts automation criteria :

professional standards flexibility in structure words-recognition powerful formatting functions

Automation of documentary information

Professional standards :

ISO-2709 file format MARC (subfields, repeatable fields) XML (!!) -> gaining importance e.g. cfr. XML : capable of dealing with semi-structured text-entities (document elements are optional, repeatable, extensible, defineable)

variable length and structure records

Automation of documentary information

Typical software characteristics :

word recognition (<>field) flexible structures Inverted File (addressbook of all words) support additional features : stopwords, equivalency lists, thesaurus (knowledge systems), strong formatting, web-capabilities etc.

<> library systems = integrated systems for catalogues and administrative data (e.g. loans)

The ISIS-environment

Why ISIS ?

professional, academic concept by UNESCO (UNISIST, CCF, MARC) educational qualities multi-platform (DOS, Windows, Unix, WWW, JAVA) non-commercial software (free) world-wide users community (especially Latin-America, Eastern Europe, Asia)

ISIS-history (1)

I.L.O. 70s: merging of C.D.S and I.S.I.S. UNESCO :

1985 : produces PC-version Micro CDS/ISIS for DOS (as a series of separate softwares) version 2.0 (1988) : added ISIS/Pascal 1990s : version 2.3 (integrated menu system) 1992 : v.3.0 (networking, multi-user), new : Unixversion 1998 : Winisis (graphical interface, hyperlinks) 2001-2004 : current version 1.5 (a.o. XML, wizards)

ISIS-history (2)

BIREME (Sao Paulo, Brazil) :

1995 : CISIS, a set of command-line utilities for ISIS-database management 1997 : ISIS-DLL, a programming library for graphical operating systems 1998 : WWWISIS : a server for CGI-web applications 2000 : WXIS = WWWISIS version 4.0

ISIS-history (3)

Italy + UNESCO : JAVAISIS

JAVA : platform-independent programming language (RTE : free) JAVAISIS allows to access (remote) ISISdatabases (based on BIREME WWWISIS-server) interface : copies WinISIS looks-n-feel now : searching + basic data-entry functions are available, but slow

ISIS-history (4)

OPENISIS : re-programming ISIS using the open source philosophy (OpenISIS Verein, http://www.openisis.org)

2002 : first initiatives 2003 : first results (but reworking needed) 2004 : version 1.0 expected

UNESCO also prepares to release ISISsoftware as an open-source software :

source code available, non-commercial best known example : Linux O.S. co-ordination and tight control still necessary, to maintain the standards and a certain unity

ISIS history (5) : WEBLIS

Since 2003 : fully integrated, web-based library system based on ISIS is available from FAO

Based on ISIS.DLL and www-isis.exe as a dedicated database-server simple, advanced and thesaurus-based searching Data entry with lists and validation Loans circulation with advanced features

Functions :

The basic concepts (1)

ISO-2709 : a format to precisely describe (bibliographic) records for transport between systems

the header and directory : fixed-format numerical description of the record (how long, which fields/lenghts), start-position of text-content and field tags the text-contents concatenated with a separator character the records separated by a record-separator used as exchange format e.g. for all MARC-tapes

ISO-2709
0084600000000027700045000010031000000040004000310230009000351200114000440030002001580050002001601000011001621000011001731090033001841210067002171 22001700284123001500301600000500316220013000321200001700451240004200468 250001000510324002800520 332001000548343000500558350000500563#ABT ASSOCIATES INC./AGRICULTUR#AMS#19951205 #Conducting Pan-European research: a preliminary evaluation of a new methodology for European aquaculture research#B#K#Shaw, S.A.#Bailly, D.#^aUniv. Strathclyde ^bGlasgow^cUK#3. Annu. Conf. of the European Association of Fisheries Economists #Dublin (Ireland)#10-12 Apr 1991#^aen#Proceedings of the third Annual Conference of the European Association of Fisheries Economists, Dublin, Ireland, 10-12 Apr il 1991#Hillis, J.P.^ed.#^aDublin (Ireland)^bThe Stationery Office#^p163-175#Ir. Fish. Invest. [B. Mar.]#0578-7467#1994#^i42#~

example record :

MARC-records

Machine Readable Catalogues (IFLA) for international standardization of bibliographic data (-> exchange) based on ISO-2709 file format field-tags 1-999 (defined by implementation, e.g. UNIMARC, CCF) variable fields and field lengths subfields, e.g. ^ade Smet^bEgbert

Inverted File support

the IF contains all searchable elements (terms) , sorted alphabetically, and their positions within the database:

which record which field which occurrence of that field which position in that field (word-counting for proximity retrieval)

the IF in fact represents all possible searches already done - except for Boolean setcombinations (AND/OR/NOT) - and saved

ISIS-structures : the MST

the database itself is a binary ISO-2709 file with all the records concatenated

no separators, binary header records can be active or non-active (e.g. changed, logically deleted) all new records are appended at the end of the file, which always grows (-> needs compacting)

ISIS-structures : XRF

the Cross-Reference file is a first-phase normal index (list of pointers, i.e. relative addresses sequence with fixed records) to the records in the MST for fast access of records an XRF-file completes a basic ISIS-database

M+X = ISIS, cfr. CISIS-tool MX (Bireme) can be reconstructed if absent by special tools (e.g. UNESCO, Bireme)

ISIS-structures

an ISIS-database = at least one combination of MST + XRF plus IF all other files are :

supporting (e.g. Field Definition Table, data-entry FMTs, presentation PFTs) or optional (e.g. stopwords .STW, equivalency list .ANY) or derived from MST : the Inverted Filecomponents, defined by FST

ISIS-structures

The Inverted File :

nodes and leaves of a B-Tree organised (for quick positioning in very big files) table, separate for short and long entries

.L01 and .L02 .N01 and .N02

an index on the B-Tree (.CNT) the postings-file : .IFP, containing all alphabetically sorted entries with their postings (record, field, occurrence, position) temporary files for sorting (in WORK-directory)

The FDT

Listing of :

data-entry worksheets (FMT) IF-definitions (FST) presentation formats (PFT) the actual fields (tag, name, length, type and repeatability) mandatory in CDS/ISIS, WinISIS, JAVAISIS but not in other family members

The Field Selection Table

defines the strings to be put into the IF three columns :

1 : identifier (a real or alias tag) 2 : a method : 8 types (per field, delimiters <> or /, per word, with or without prefixes) 3 : the extraction format, following the ISIS-Formatting Language (with all features of it, incl. ISIS/Pascal programs)

SYSPAR.PAR

All settings of the software, some of them can be set using configuration Line 5 : data folder -> either the database-files or their referral files DBN.PAR In WinISIS : very much used CISIS : CIPAR.CPR

The Formatting Language

= the real nucleus of the ISIS-software and its main development tool defines which strings are produced as either :

database-values (taken from the fields); can be processed values from the database, e.g. fields combined, computations, even data taken from other ISIS-databases by REF-function

or

literals : quoted strings, e.g. HTML- or XML-tags

in WinISIS : hyperlinks are added to enrich the presentation graphically and functionally

The Formatting Language

FL is used in 5 basic ISIS-functions :

normal output of the database : display on screen or printing or dumping in file to define the strings extracted for the IF to convert values while importing or exporting records from/to ISO-2709 using a reformatting PFT for sorting records for validation of data entry

FL basics

3 possible element types :

Vx : values from the fields, can be processed, even by a program (format exit) Literals : texts to display Mode commands and links unconditional e.g. ID=v1 |conditional| (with + : not last/first) e.g. |Remarks: |+v500 repeatable e.g. (Author: v300)-> only once

Literals : 3 types

FL basics

Mode commands : p/d/h

P: proofreading D: data mode (with . and space) H: heading mode -> end user

l/u : lower/uppercase {i/b/f/fs } : italics, bold, fonts, fontsize etc.

FL basics : logical routing

IF condition THEN statements ELSE other statements FI nesting possible Select Vx case value : statements case value : statements elsecase : statements Endsel

FL basics : hyperLINKs

LINK((prompt),`COMMAND ,format)

Commands : e.g. OPENFILE, TEXTBOX E.g.

LINK((website),(OPENFILE ),v445) LINK((abstract),(TEXTBOX ),v600) link((Show'),'TEXTBOXIMG ',v50)

Textboxes can also contain images, e.g.

Can be RCHILD -> closing with record e.g. TEXTBOXIMGRCHILD ,v50

To do on FL :

hyperlinks (LINK) REF(L( )) on internal + external database textboxes OPENFILE etc.

Assignment 1 :

Install WinISIS on your PC Use the WinISIS-wizard to produce :

a FDT for a catalogue database a data-entry worksheet with 1 picklist one simple IF-FST at least one standard PFT

Enter a few sample bibliographic records

Assignment 2 : FL

enter records with 1) repeatable fields 2) subfields 3) date field etc. Install ASFA-database apply basic FL commands to display, using WinISIS PFT-editor, e.g. starting from decorated PFT :

literals (uncond. ; repeat. ; cond. | |) fs, cl, i, b, box() etc. modes : mpl, mhl, mdl

Assignment 3 : elaboration

Create 2 new databases :

For users, I.e. names/addresses For loans transactions

Enter some data in both new databases Develop PFTs for bibliographic display with loans info, using REF(L()) functions

Assignment 4 : recapitulation

Create new database ABSTRA with only two fields : v1 (title) and v2 (abstract), indexing on full title and all abstract words export title- and abstract fields from ASFAdatabase using export FST import into ABSTRA write ASFA-PFT to display abstract in separate textbox, using ABSTRA as external database with REF-function (or write ABSTRA-PFT to display e.g. authors from ASFA-database) use ABSTRA-database to test search techniques

Sources for self-study on ISIS

WinISIS Handbook Hopkinson&Buxton Novice.htm (E. de Smet, intro) WinISIS.DOC : official manual WinISIS1_4.PDF : Guidebook ISIS/DOS users (by Int. Trade Centre) Training suite PPT slides