MWeb™ Universal Features

Main Features

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• Integrated searching of multiple databases or MARC files over the Web. No need to build searchable copies. Tested with 50 databases.
• Several ways to search provide fast and easy access to museum, library, and cultural information for all levels of sophistication, from the public to researchers.
• Integrates with existing MWeb systems, including PastPerfect-Online.
• Design your Interface by choosing options or by modifying CSS for more control. Add your own graphics!
• No need for programming or support contracts -- one low price for a perpetual license. But our top-quality support is available if you need it.
• Please note that this product may require some technical expertise to install. More information may be found on the Server Requirements page.
• If you plan to include databases other than MWeb Enterprise, PastPerfect, or MARC files, you will need detailed information about your databases (tables and fields) in order to configure MWeb Universal.

Contents

Overview

Federated Searching

MWeb Universal provides federated searching to existing databases and/or MARC files that can be accessed over the Internet. (Federated searching means searching all the databases at once, with an integrated display of search results.)

This is the fastest and easiest way for a consortium to provide access to its members' data and images. Members can use different internal systems and need not provide Z39.50 access. No need to export or send files anywhere!

A searcher may search all resources at once, or may limit the search to specific databases or to specific content within databases.

Advantages

• Users search data from all participating databases in an integrated way.
• There is no need to modify your database, or export it, or send it anywhere.
• You can restrict access to only the fields you want to make public.
• MWeb can display the entire Unicode character set if your data is encoded in UTF-8, or you may use Latin-1 or Numeric Character Representations. MARC files can be in MARC-8 or UTF-8.
• MWeb Universal does not and cannot modify your databases in any way.

Architecture

MWeb Universal works by passing on the users' search requests to the servers where the Databases reside. A Data Connector installed for each Database receives the query and accesses the Database. The search results are returned in XML format. MWeb then displays the results.

* From other MWeb sites; not part of MWeb Universal.

Types of Databases

MWeb Universal accesses databases three ways:

1. Using Open Database Connectivity (ODBC), a universal way to access relational databases. This means it can search databases stored in Oracle, SQL Server, Access, Foxpro, etc. And since most museum and library systems use such databases, MWeb Universal can search them.
2. MWeb Universal can search MARC files in their native form (no exporting or conversion required). You may have any number of MARC21 files of the same format (bibliographic or authority) and in the same encoding (MARC-8 or UTF-8). Later releases will allow mixed formats and encodings, as well as UNIMARC and MARCXML.
3. MWeb Universal can search PastPerfect databases. MWeb Enterprise databases will be searchable in Release 2.0.

Configuration

MWeb Universal includes a number of layout templates, color schemes, and font selections you may select online and change at any time. You may add your own logo, page title, and page footer.

Here are the layout features that can be configured:

1. Overall layout (see image)
2. Positioning of displays
3. Width of displays
4. Pre-set color scheme
5. Colors to override colors in the chosen scheme
6. Background images or patterns
7. Alignment of logo
8. Fonts
9. Size of text in buttons
10. Style of borders in buttons
11. Colors for buttons and links

In addition, because Universal is controlled by CSS and and XSLT stylesheets, you can dramatically redesign the interface if you are familiar with those technologies. At that point Universal becomes a search engine that you can style as you wish.

The flexibility of MWeb layouts may be seen at the top of the MWeb Homepage.

Interface Management System™

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MWeb includes the Interface Management System (IMS), which you can use to choose layout, color scheme, and fonts; to add logos and graphics; to change the browser window title, page footer, and other text messages; and to select Search Results and Full Record layouts. Whatever changes you make take place immediately. (System error messages cannot be changed.)

Release 1.2 expanded the number of customizable messages, as well as adding additional color schemes and fonts.

Content

Data content

MWeb Universal accesses your existing databases. It has no limits on database size, number of records, number of fields, number of images, etc. For performance reasons, we have limited field length to 60,000 bytes; this can be raised if it is a problem for you. MWeb currently understands the UTF-8, Latin-1, NCR, and MARC-8 character encodings; we will add others if needed.

MWeb Universal accesses databases three ways:

1. Using Open Database Connectivity (ODBC), a universal way to access relational databases. Release 2.0 has been tested with the following databases: Access, Foxpro, MySQL, Oracle, and SQL Server. And since most museum and library systems use one of these databases, MWeb Universal can search them too.
2. MWeb Universal can search MARC files in their native form (no exporting or conversion required). Any number of MARC21 files, bibliographic or authority, and in MARC-8 or UTF-8 encoding, can be searched simultaneously. Later releases will allow UNIMARC and MARCXML.
   
   Release 1.2 supports only a single combination of format and encoding.
   
   Release 2.0 will support both bibliographic and authority formats and MARC-8 and UTF-8 encodings. Simply create a separate database for each format and encoding.
3. MWeb Universal can search PastPerfect-Online and MWeb Enterprise databases.

Images

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Data records (including MARC records) may contain links to images. Records may have any number of image links, and images may be linked to any number of records.

You may provide two sizes for each image. The larger should be around 640 to 680 pixels on the longer side; the smaller (called a thumbnail) should be between 120 and 180 pixels on the longer side. You may wish to experiment with different sizes, but these are the sizes all our clients use.

If you provide only one size, such as is normal for library records, MWeb will resize the image when it needs to display it as a thumbnail.

When the user clicks on a thumbnail, the larger image opens in a new window. Each large image opens in a separate window, as shown here. Any number of images can be opened.

Unicode Character Set

In order to display records in all languages, MWeb uses the Unicode character set, an international standard that comprises all languages currently in use worldwide. See the Unicode website for more information.

Databases can be encoded in UTF-8 or Latin-1, or may use decimal Numerical Character References (like ō). MARC files may be in MARC-8 or UTF-8.

Currently only latin characters are indexed.

Searching

Keyword Search

Keyword Search provides the well-known search box in which the user types keywords or phrases. One or more keywords and/or phrases may be entered; these are automatically "ANDed" but the user can separate terms with OR to override this. Keywords may be truncated.

By default, everything is searched. The user may limit searches to specific databases, to specify types of material, or to records with images.

Every word in every field can be indexed, or you may choose not to index some fields. We provide a list of common words that are not indexed, and you can modify this list.

The Keyword Search screen has a unique Help Panel that is unobtrusive but opens up to show the syntax used for boolean searches, truncation, etc. The panel is closed when the Keyword Search screen is first displayed; the user clicks to open it. Help text is customizable beginning with Release 1.2.

Help Panel closed	Help Panel open
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Advanced Search

Advanced Search lets the user specify where in the records the search terms (keywords or phrases) should be found. Fields in your Databases are mapped to Search Categories, based on the Dublin Core approach. Using Search Categories means the user doesn't have to figure out your data model, or decide what fields might contain the search terms. This is especially useful if you have multiple fields for the same kind of data, such as multiple title fields -- all titles are searched at once.

The Search Category mappings mean that users can search on all types of records in a single search, such as museum data and library data.

The user may limit searches to specific databases, to specify types of material, or to records with images.

The Advanced Search screen has a unique Help Panel that is unobtrusive but opens up to show the syntax used for boolean searches, truncation, etc. The panel is closed when the Advanced Search screen is first displayed; the user clicks to open it. Helptext is customizable beginning with Release 1.2.

Help Panel closed	Help Panel open
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Displaying Search Results

Tabular display	Paragraph display
Thumbnail display
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You determine which fields are shown in each type of search result. Each record includes a link to the full record. Thumbnails can be clicked on to see the full-size images.

Some displays look better if the thumbnails can be resized by MWeb. You will have this option in a future release if the dimensions of each image are in the database.

Full-Record Displays

When the user clicks on a link in a Search Results screen, the full record is displayed. These layouts are controlled by XML stylesheets (XSLT files). MWeb comes with several choices, and you can modify them to meet your needs.

MWeb comes with two Full Record layouts. Both show all images associated with the record. The Alternative Layout shows the primary image full size. (You will be able to detemine this size in a future release, if the image dimensions are in the database.)

Whichever layout you choose, you determine what fields are shown, the order of fields, and the labels for fields.

Traditional Layout	Alternative Layout
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With either style, Full Records can link to other information in a dense network of discovery. At the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, certain artwork records have been linked to as many as hundreds of documents containing background, artist information, exhibition history, provenance history, and other data both inside and outside the museum.

Technical Details

Accessibility

"Accessibility" is the term used by web designers to indicate the availability of a site to the handicapped, especially the visually impaired. There are generally two major concerns: the ability of the partially sighted to override font sizes and colors for better visibility, and the use of the site by "screen-readers," software that reads the site out loud to the blind. Users of screen-readers are best served by having elements on the page in a meaningful order, by having alternative text for graphical elements, and by having alternatives to Flash and other visual components.

Our policy is to enable accessibility by removing barriers, such as the elimination of frames (since frames confuse screen-readers). However, we do not prescribe any specific fonts, colors, or navigation. This is a decision each client must make, depending on their policies and requirements.

For more details on MWeb and accessibility, see MWeb and Accessibility.

Technologies

MWeb Universal consists of standard CGI programs, compiled for optimum performance. MWeb is delivered as compiled programs (EXEs) for the easiest installation. MWeb currently runs on Windows servers only; a Linux version will be developed if we receive sufficient requests for it. (Of course, MWeb can be used on all platforms (Windows, Mac, Linux, etc.), since it requires only a browser.)

Database technology

Your data can be in any database that provides access through ODBC (that is, just about everything). (Exception: MARC files are accessed directly, not through ODBC.)

MWeb uses the free open-source SQLite database for its control tables.

Beginning with Release 1.2, MWeb's index can be stored in MySQL (instead of SQLite) for sites with high traffic.

Browsers

All browsers on all platforms are sent the W3C "strict" doctype, and MWeb emits almost* standard "strict" HTML, this means that all modern browsers for Windows, Macintosh, and Unix/Linux can use MWeb without problems. (Sometimes displays vary slightly between browsers, a well-known problem in our industry.)

* MWeb Universal's HTML is 99.5% compliant and will be 100% soon. The remaining 0.05% does not affect displays or functionality.

MWeb does not require ActiveX, Java, Flash, Ajax, or other technologies that can be risky; this allows users to keep their computers and browsers at high security levels and still be able to use MWeb. Of course you may use ActiveX, Java, Flash, Ajax, etc. in pages that link to MWeb, or pages MWeb links to, such as your homepage, sitemap, etc. These pages are not considered part of MWeb.

Users must have JavaScript and cookies turned on in order to use MWeb. These are essential features of any web application that delivers sophisticated navigation and functionality. Cookies are temporary and expire when the browser is closed. Neither the JavaScript nor the cookies contain any personally identifiable information; they are used only for navigation. They do not write anything to the user's computer and are not stored after the browser is closed. Systems Planning Privacy Policies

Installation and Support

We provide generous support in implementing and maintaining your MWeb site.

• The installation program performs some of the configuration for standard installations.
• Wizards simplify the configuration for some types of databases, such as MWeb Enterprise Databases, PastPerfect databases, and MARC21 files.
• The MWeb Universal Administrator's Guide is a complete reference to installing and configuring the product. It is maintained on the Systems Planning website where it can be kept up-to-date.
• We provide free email support to you and your technical staff. (We do not support your end-users.) We fix bugs reported in the current and immediately previous releases.
• Specialized data editing, cleanup, and conversion services are available, both manual or automated.

Support Policies

Future Features

Unless noted, the features described on this page will be in release 2.0. Here are the major enhancements we have planned for later releases. Most of them are already features in MWeb Enterprise and are described here. Enhancements are listed in approximately the order we plan to deliver them. Your input to this list would be welcome!

Release 2.1

Release 2.1 will focus on performance (speeding up searches) and convenience (easier configuration). However, we do plan some new features as well:

• A Linux version of MWeb, both to run on Linux servers and to provide searching of Databases on Linux servers.
• Use of XSLT to format Image Windows, so these can be customized.
• A trial version of MWeb so you can try before you buy.
• Automatic updates (under your control) so bug-fixes and enhancements can be downloaded and installed with a minimum of effort.

Later releases

• Run MWeb on cloud hosting services.
• Searching of MARCXML and UNIMARC files.
• Inclusion of media and documents.
• Searching on date-ranges, periods, dynasties, etc.
• Search Suggestions.
• All messages customizable.
• End-user sorting of Search Results.
• Extension of MWeb Security Model to non-MWeb databases.
• Resizing of thumbnails and images if their dimensions are in the database.
• Browsing (searching with hierarchies).
• Vocabulary Views.
• Favorites.
• Search capture and reporting.
• Searchable HTML content.
• API to the the Data Connectors for access by Flash, Ajax, and other applications.