University of Bath

Much of UKOLN's work is performed in the area of digital information management, with a particular focus on libraries. They will lead the work package on user requirements, which will involve close co-operation with the MCSG, pilot sites-Sussex Past, and the Victoria and Albert Museum. In addition, UKOLN will provide expertise in the area of metadata schemas, especially with regard to the work package on XML metadata, schemas and style sheets. UKOLN is a national focus of expertise in digital information management. It provides policy, research and awareness services to the UK library, information and cultural heritage communities.

UKOLN is funded by Resource: The Council for Museums, Archives & Libraries (the organisation succeeding the Library and Information Commission), the Joint Information Systems Committee (JISC) of the Higher and Further Education Funding Councils, as well as by project funding from the JISC and the European Union. UKOLN also receives support from the University of Bath where it is based. More details on UKOLN activities can be found on its web site at: http://www.ukoln.ac.uk/. UKOLN aims to inform practice and influence policy in the following areas: Digital libraries, Metadata and resource discovery, Distributed library and information systems, Bibliographic management, Web technologies, and Public library networking. It provides network information services, including the Ariadne and Exploit Interactive magazines and runs workshops and conferences. UKOLN has programmes of work in several areas that are relevant to this proposal.

Rachel Heery

Assistant Director (Research and Development): Rachel received an MA in Information Studies from the University of Sheffield. She has undertaken research at UKOLN since 1995 in the field of metadata, resource discovery and data architecture. She brings to this work wide experience of the implementation and development of information management systems in the commercial and library sectors. At UKOLN Rachel has been involved in a number of projects funded by the UK Electronic Libraries Review (eLib) and by the European Commission. Rachel has led UKOLN's contribution to DESIRE, ROADS and BIBLINK and is currently co-ordinating work on Renardus and IMesh,. She has a particular interest in schema registries and application profiles on which she is working within the SCHEMAS project. She has been active in the Dublin Core activity and is a member of the Dublin Core Technical Advisory Committee.

Dr Manjula Patel

Research and development: Manjula received a Bachelor of science degree in computational science and economics from the University of Leeds, a Masters degree in systems design from the University of Manchester and a Doctorate in computer graphics and animation from the University of Bath. She has previously worked as a research officer in the School of Mathematical Sciences at the University of Bath, a lecturer and computer manager in the same school. She was also the school's representative on the campus computer users' committee and the web development officer for the school. Manjula moved to UKOLN in August 1997 and has since worked on several Internet resource discovery related research projects. These have included ROADS, DESIRE and BIBLINK. The main project she is presently involved in is SCHEMAS. Manjula is also a member of the VIDE video access working group.

Michael Day

Research Officer: Michael has worked at the UK Office for Library and Information Networking since June 1996 and has contributed to a number of projects that relate to metadata issues, Internet resource discovery and the preservation of digital information. These include the BIBLINK and DESIRE projects funded by the European Union under its Telematics Applications Programme and the ROADS and CEDARS projects funded by the JISC as part of the Electronic Libraries Programme (eLib). He received an MA in Library and Information Studies from Loughborough University of Technology in 1989. Since then, he has held positions at the Bodleian Library in Oxford as a cataloguer of electronic texts in the Oxford Text Archive and at the University of Reading as the librarian of a small departmental library. Since starting work at UKOLN, he has produced a number of articles and research reports on metadata topics and on digital preservation issues.