FreshwaterLife Knowledge Item Pools

What are Knowledge Item Pools?

Why Knowledge Item Pools?

How do Knowledge Item Pools Work?

Searching Knowledge Item Pools Collector Topics

Collector Topics

What distinguishes a Knowledge Item from a Pool?

Constraints

What are Knowledge Item Pools?

A Knowledge Item Pool is a facility which allows FreshwaterLife to display knowledge items that reside in other resource (=provider) systems/databases and are to be displayed alongside FreshwaterLife knowledge items both in the search results screens and in topics.

Why KO Pools?

Knowledge iten pools are an effective way of making knowledge items from different systems easily and simultaneously available in one chosed location. This is seen as being a more effective use of resources, preventing unnecessary duplication of effort whilst at the same time providing users with access to relevant knowledge in a wider range of resource systems/databases without the need for them to visit every system.

How do Knowledge Item Pools Work?

An external system or database is regularly queried using keywords or other search strings that extract knowledge objects relevant to the subject coverage of FreshwaterLife. The knowledge item metadata (reference information) retrieved includes links to the full text files/documents if available. This metadata is then converted into the FreshwaterLife format and indexed. The converted metadata and related indexes comprise the knowledge item Pool which sits externally to FreshwaterLife but on the same server.

Searching Knowledge Item Pools

When a user searches FreshwaterLife, the knowledge item Pool indexes are searched at the same time and all relevant knowledge items, whether they are from FreshwaterLife or from a knowledge item Pool, are displayed intermixed in the search results screen.

Collector Topics

A knowledge item from a Pool is also displayed in a topic if a keyword in the knowledge item matches a keyword in the topic collector search string. Every topic has the ability to `collect' knowledge items in this way (not only from knowledge item Pools but from other FreshwaterLife topics). In the topic form there is a field called `Collector Search String'. By default the topic id number (e.g. in:424) will be displayed in this field. This ensures that all knowledge items that have been physically added or linked to this topic remain so, but the topic editor can extend this collector search string to include keywords,
e.g. in:424 OR keyword:"FRESHWATER BIOLOGY"
so the topic will `collect' and display all knowledge items with the keywords "FRESHWATER BIOLOGY"
whether they are stored in FreshwaterLife or in a linked knowledge item Pool.

What distinguishes a knowledge item from a Pool?

The knowledge item owner is usually a Corporate Body as opposed to an individual. This information is displayed in the right hand side bar of the knowledge item Info screen.

In the knowledge item information screen there is no topic path bar displayed because a knowledge item from a pool is not permanently linked to any topic in FreshwaterLife, there is just a back arrow to return you to the topic knowledge or search results screen you have just come from.

In the knowledge item Info screen there is no Comments tab displayed because it is not a FreshwaterLife knowledge item and so you cannot add a Comment to it.

When a topic editor or chief editor is logged in there is no Edit tab displayed in the knowledge item Info screen because a knowledge item from a Pool is not a FreshwaterLife knowledge item and therefore cannot be edited in FreshwaterLife.
In the search results screen there will be no topic path bar displayed because a knowledge item from a Pool is not permanently linked to any topic in FreshwaterLife.

Constraints

FreshwaterLife Editors do not have control over the metadata captured from provider systems and so the presentation of information may not always coincide with FreshwaterLife format or standards, e.g. spelling mistakes and inconsistencies in the use of case may occur. We will provide feedback to the owners of the provider system when any such problems are reported, and we are working in the international arena towards the wider use of common metadata standards to improve the delivery of information.