Austlit: A Gateway on steroids

Abstract

Austlit: The Australian Literature Gateway provides access to bibliographical records on almost 400 000 Australian creative and critical works (regardless of format), and to biographical and organisational information on more than 10 000 Australian authors and literary organisations. The Gateway was formed by a consortia of eight universities and the National Library, incorporates records from a number of previously existing databases, and aims to provide Australian students and researchers with a single access point for their Australian literature needs. The Gateway system was custom built and employs leading edge knowledge models (including IFLA's 'Functional Requirements for Bibliographic Records' for works; the INDECS model for agents and their relationships with works; and Topic Maps for creating flexible relationships) and enabling and delivery technologies such as Z39.50, XML and XSL. The Gateway is the first large scale implementation of IFLA's FRBR model, and is an early adopter of INDECS and Topic Maps. This paper will report on the reasons behind the choice of models, how these models were implemented, and what the implications of adopting these models have been from both the production system and user perspectives.