Real World Example: Tools to Help Organize and Use Files

• As users post digital resources, each file or collection will be efficiently labeled to identify the contents and usage

• Automated bulk metadata tools will allow users to easily enter data to organize and label files and place them into collections

• This improved organization and descriptive scheme will improve both file management and searching efficiency

• LionShare has built-in slideshow capabilities to provide fun and constructive options for organization and presentation, along with their built-in support for PDF files to help users format and share their data

Real world example: A professor of archeology is nearing his retirement and he would like to share his collection of thousands of pictures that he has accumulated throughout his long career of archaeological digs. Knowing that his pictures would be worthwhile for newer professors to use, the professor is faced with the task of labeling and organizing each picture. Without a searchable database, his collection is useless to others since there would be no way to find any of the files through an online search. However, he does not want to spend time entering data into the fields of thousands of database records. Not having the time or technological skills to build a database to guide others with their searches, these valuable images remain stuck in the professor�s hard drive�totally inaccessible to others.

Without LionShare: The choice is simple, either the faculty member will need to spend months entering data into a database and somehow making that accessible to online searches or he abandons the project. All too often these valuable collections retire along with the faculty member and are lost to the academic world.

With LionShare: The professor would be able to let LionShare do the work of creating the searchable database records. The professor, like many digital photographers, has not created a database for his pictures but he does use a system of folders, subfolders and file names to keep track of his pictures. In his case, he uses a folder based hierarchy system of the following: continent, country, and specific site. The file-name refers to the specific object being photographed. LionShare can easily be configured to read this hierarchy and filename information and write it into the appropriate database fields. The professor can also create standardized fields such as his name in photographer field. LionShare will also be able to read data from the headers of various files types--such as when the picture was taken which is recorded by digital cameras. He can also create collections of related images if he so chooses. Combine all of these together and the result is a very low effort, instant, searchable database. With a simple click of the mouse he can then make it accessible to other LionShare users. His collection has now been transformed from something that was only useful to him to one that is now useful to many LionShare users. If he further chose to publish it to LionShare's permanent storage space his collection would still be available even when he was no longer logged on.