DPT manual The Menus
There are five main menus in the Data Preparation Tool: File, Options, Actions, Windows and About.
Contents
- 1 the File menu
- 2 the Options menu
- 2.1 Country code
- 2.2 Repository code
- 2.3 Digital object type / Rights
- 2.4 General options for EDM conversion
- 2.5 List of date conversion rules
- 2.6 Use own stylesheet
- 2.7 Use own schema
- 2.8 Choose default stylesheet
- 2.9 Choose default schema
- 2.10 Checks when loading files
- 2.11 Default folder for saved files
- 2.12 Languages
- 3 the Actions menu
- 4 the Windows menu
- 5 the About menu
The main menu option File has five items.
Select file or directory (shortcut: Ctrl+O or Cmd+O)
This is where you can open your files or directory (folder) to be able to process them in the tool. You have the possibility to select one or several files, or one directory. If you select a directory, the tool will import all the files located in this directory, however, subdirectories will not be included. Once you have made your selection, the files will appear in the "XML and EAD" part in the left side of the screen and then they are ready to be processed.
You can process hundreds or even thousands of files together. Once you have files available in the left part of the screen, selecting one or more files will activate the buttons in the right part of the screen and the one named List controlaccess in the bottom of the screen.
Close selected file(s) (shortcut: Ctrl+D or Cmd+D):
Using this option with one or more files selected in the left part of the screen, makes those files disappear from the list. So this is in fact an 'unselect' option.
Save selected APE file(s) (shortcut: Ctrl+S or Cmd+S):
Once one or more file have been converted and/or validated using the buttons in the right part of the screen, they have to be saved to your harddrive and you can do that using this option. The newly created files will be saved in the directory named output by default, but the Options menu allows you to change that to another location.
The names of the files will change when they are saved. If the file has been converted and validated, it is saved with the prefix apeEAD_, so in that case the name of the file in the output directory will be apeEAD_{original_name}.xml. If it is only converted and not validated yet, the prefix will be NOT_apeEAD_, so in that case the name of the file in the output directory will be: NOT_apeEAD_{original_name}.xml.
Of course, this does not affect your original files, nor wil a NOT_apeEAD_ file be overwritten by an apeEAD_ file in case you perform the conversion and validation steps as two separate actions.
Save report for selected file(s) (shortcut: Ctrl+R or Cmd+R):
Use this option in case you want to have a report on the actions you have performed in the tool.
All reports on the files processed in the tool (and selected in the list), even if the files did not pass the validation or conversion steps, are saved in one file, which is by default saved in the output directory of the tool and named: report.txt.
Quit:
Use this option in case you want to close the tool and its interface.
The main menu option Options has twelve items. They are meant to set up and maintain your own parameters in the tool, allowing you to apply specific rules during the processing of your files.
Country code
Here you can change the 2-letter country code, the one you had to enter at the first launch of the tool (see the Installation and launch page).
Repository code
Here you can change the identifier for your archives, the one you had to enter at the first launch of the tool (see the Installation and launch page). It’s useful when you manage more than one institution.
Digital object type / Rights
This option allows you to add specific indication on the type and on the rights, mandatory for Europeana and strongly recommended for the Archives portal Europe. Be aware of the fact that these indications will then be applied by default to all files processed in the DPT until you change or suppress them.
The digital object type indicates whether the digitised archives are Text, Image, Sound, Video or 3D. If you don’t use this option, the default value will be Unspecified. This option is used within the Archives Portal Europe for refining the search results. Those values are reported inside your apeEAD XML files after you convert them. The chosen type will then be available inside your apeEAD XML file within each DAO element as attribute @xlink:role. In case, your local data already contain this information, you also have to specify that this shall be used if found.
Note: Converting the file and then choosing a type will NOT change the type inside the newly created file. A new conversion is needed.
The Rights information allows you to add default rights statement for the digital objects as well as for the finding aids themselves thanks to a dropdown list (containing the main licenses or indication of rights such as public domain mark or the different creative commons), that can be completed by a description and the name of the rights holder.
General options for EDM conversion
You can specify by default the source of the identifiers as well as the base URL for the landing pages other than the digital objects.
List of date conversion rules
This option lists in a dialogue box the rules that will be applied during the conversion on the date element of your files in order to transform text dates into normalised dates. In the left column, you indicate the values read (to be found in the original files), in the right column, you indicate the values converted (to be found in the converted files). For instance you can indicate that 18th Century will be converted in 1701-1800, circa 1877 in 1877, or in 1876-1878 etc. These conversion rules can be saved to be re-used later on. You can modify them as often as needed. Please note that this is an extra possibility, to complete the normalisation of dates already done during the conversion by the tool (See annex 2 for the full list of conversion rules). These added rules have priority on the default rules.
Use own stylesheet
This option allows you to use your own style sheet (XSLT) in order to do your conversions instead of the default one. This option opens a dialogue box where you can select a style sheet and copy it in the xsl folder of the tool. The stylesheet then appears in the list of the summary tab and can be chosen to convert your files.
Use own schema
This option allows you to use your own schema (this must a valid XSD file). This option opens a dialogue box where you can select a schema and copy it in the xsl directory of the tool. The schema then appears in the list of schemas of the summary tab.
Choose default stylesheet
Either default-apeEAD.xsl, or default-apeEAC-CPF.xsl; by default the style sheet selected for newly imported files is the default-apeEAD style sheet, you can use this option if you wish to use another default style sheet on a regular base.
Choose default schema
lists the different possibilities offered by the tool to validate the files EAD 2002, apeEAD, apeEAC-CPF, EAC-CPF, EAG 2012, apeMETS, apeMETS Rights, apeMETS Xlink, EAD2002 DTD. By default the system sets the data type to apeEAD files, you can change this by using this option.
Checks when loading files
This option allows the tool to check if the files that you are uploading are valid XML files. This is only an option because it might take time if you have to upload numerous files. Before displaying the file in the list, the tool parses the file and rejects the non XML files. For each file, a pop-up window warns you and allows you do copy the error message.
Default folder for saved files
The default folder where the tool saves the files as well as the report on the XML quality is the output folder of the tool (one of the six folders mentioned above on the page: Installation and launch of the tool). This option allows you to change the default folder.
Languages
The tool is available in six languages: Dutch, English, French, German, Greek and Hungarian. The tool will open in the language of your operating system if it is Dutch, French, German, Greek or Hungarian and if not found will roll back to English.
The main menu option Actions has four items.
Validate (shortcut: Ctrl+N or Cmd+N)
This item does the same as the validate button in the main summary tab (see figure 1).
Convert (shortcut: Ctrl+M or Cmd+M)
This item does the same as the convert button in the main summary tab (see figure 1).
apeEAC-CPF
Has only one submenu that opens a form in a pop-up window (figure 3a and 3b). You have to first choose one of the three possibilities: person, family, or corporate body. Then the corresponding form is displayed. The form is subdivided in four tabs that have to be completed and correspond to the ISAAR-CPF standard: Identity, Description, Relations, Control.
EAG 2012
Has two sub-menus: Select an existing EAG(2012) file and Create a new EAG2012 file.
- Select an existing EAG(2012) file allows you to open the file that you want to process in the tool (completing or correcting existing elements for instance).
- Create a new EAG2012 file opens a form in a pop-up Window (figure 4). The form is subdivided in seven tabs that have to be completed following the logical order of the ISDIAH standard: Institution, Identity, Contact, Access and Services, Description, Control, Relations. You move from one tab to the other by clicking on the next/previous buttons. The tab "Your institution" includes all mandatory elements, plus some optional elements. Once saved, the EAG file is added to the files in the list and can be validated afterwards.
The main menu option Windows has five items.
Summary (shortcut: Ctrl+1 or Cmd+1)
Validation (shortcut: Ctrl+2 or Cmd+2)
Conversion (shortcut: Ctrl+3 or Cmd+3)
Europeana conversion (shortcut: Ctrl+4 or Cmd+4)
Edition (shortcut: Ctrl+5 or Cmd+5)
In order to change to a selected tab, you can either click on it or select it in this menu, or use the shortcut.
The main menu option About has two items.
Visit project website
This option opens a page in your browser (you need an internet connection) and you will access the APEx project website (www.apex-project.eu).
APE DPT v2.0.x
This indicates the version of the DPT you are working with. At the opening of the tool, an automatic check for updates is performed. At the moment his item shows the current version of the tool: APE DPT v2.6.1.
