CONTENTdm is a digital asset management system used by libraries, archives, museums, and other cultural heritage institutions across the world. CONTENTdm is an OCLC product.
According to OCLC:
CONTENTdm is the content management system used by the North Dakota State Library and the Digital Horizons consortium.
The fundamentals of using CONTENTdm to manage your digital collections are covered in three webinars from OCLC. Recordings of these webinars or information about upcoming live classes are available on OCLC's CONTENTdm training page. This is the best starting place for those who are new to CONTENTdm.
This guide will cover several different aspects of CONTENTdm and its Project Client:
Add URLs/ Embed External Content
Tab-Delimited Text
General
Collection Administration
Item Administration
Controlled vocabularies are standardized and organized lists of words, phrases, terms, names, etc. that provide a consistent way to describe and/or tag data. Essentially, they are a list of terms that have been preapproved for use for a given metadata field. According to the University of Texas Libraries, controlled vocabularies "are standardized and organized arrangements of words and phrases and provide a consistent way to describe data.".
Using a controlled vocabulary for a title field, for example, would generally not be feasible because titles often vary. However, for a field like location, controlled vocabularies come in handy so you do not accidentally use a different variation of a term (like using "No. Dak." instead of "North Dakota"). Controlled vocabularies are useful for metadata fields for personal names or organizations. You want to make sure that you are using the correct version of the name.
The Project Client of CONTENTdm uses several controlled vocabularies for certain fields.
It is important to note that the Project Client is NOT equipped with an "undo" button. Therefore, extreme care needs to be taken when entering metadata into the Project Client (especially when using the "Fill Down," "Fill Up," or "Fill All" functions).
Downloading the Project Client
Project Client: Overview
Editing Project Client Settings
Errors
Questions
Other
Uploading Items from the Project Client
After an item has been added to the Project Client and all the appropriate metadata has been added, the item can be uploaded. To do this, follow these steps: click on the checkbox next to the item's thumbnail image and then click on the "Upload for Approval" button. This will upload the item from the Project Client to the digital collection.
However, the item is not public yet. The item needs to be approved and the collection indexed (via the online CONTENTdm Admin) in order for it to be added to the online collection. View the "Approving Items on CONTENTdm Admin" section below for more information on this step.
Approving Items on CONTENTdm Admin
After an item has been uploaded from the Project Client, it needs to be approved on the online CONTENTdm Admin to be added to the digital collection. To do this, review the item on the "Approve Items" page of CONTENTdm Admin and then "approve and index." These steps are explained in more detail on the CONTENTdm: Uploading & Approving Items guide.
The Website Configuration Tool is used for branding and tailoring the appearance and behavior of key elements of your CONTENTdm collections. There are six tabs on the left menu of the Website Configuration Tool: Appearance, Search & Browse, Items, Page Types, Localization, and Custom. Of these six tabs, three of them have notable sections within them:
Digital Projects Toolkit
Quick Links
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Many of these resources and programs are funded under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act from the Institute of Museum and Library Services.
