In June 2004, IMLS approved a request for an extension to the Z-Interop Project to explore a "radioactive MARC record" approach for interoperability testing. The proposal we submitted to IMLS in March 2004 for additional funding is available.

The Z-Interop2 Project is a continuation of the original Z-Interop Project that began in 2000. In late 1999, the U.S. federal Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) <http://www.imls.gov> awarded he School of Library and Information Sciences <http://www.unt.edu/slis> and the Texas Center for Digital Knowledge <http://www.txcdk.org> at University of North Texas (UNT) a National Leadership Grant for a research and demonstration project to improve interoperability between online library catalogs. The project, Realizing the Vision of Networked Access to Library Resources: An Applied Research and Demonstration Project to Establish and Operate a Z39.50 Interoperability Testbed, developed rigorous methodologies, test procedures, and measures to assess interoperability between systems using the ANSI/NISO Z39.50 standard protocol for information retrieval. The overall goal for the Z39.50 Interoperability Testbed (Z-Interop) Project was to improve Z39.50 semantic interoperability among libraries for information access and resource sharing. The project continued through August 2002. Documents from the Z-Interop Project, Phase 1 are available

Z-Interop2 is exploring alternative approaches for interoperability testing in the context of Z39.50 and online library catalogs. In the final interim report for Z-Interop1, we suggested an alternative method for interoperability testing for Z39.50 servers to accommodate limitations of individual library systems that precluded them from participating in the original Z-Interop testbed. The idea for this approach came from Sebastian Hammer, a principal in Index Data that specializes in Z39.50 and networked information retrieval. The alternative method uses a small set of very special MARC records (we refer to these as “radioactive MARC records,” which can serve as diagnostic mechanisms for assessing system functionality, performance, and interoperability.  We think this alternative approach has potential for providing interoperability testing services to individual libraries. In addition, this approach may be adaptable to other protocol and metadata contexts beyond Z39.50 and MARC.

The project is under the direction of Dr. William E. Moen, a Fellow of the Texas Center for Digital Knowledge and associate professor at UNT <http://www.unt.edu/wmoen>. Moen has participated in state, national, and international efforts to develop Z39.50 application profiles for use by libraries. He served as chair of a National Information Standards Organization committee to develop an American National Standard Z39.50 Profile for Library Applications <http://www.unt.edu/zprofile>. Index Data is a collaborator on the project with special responsibilities for developing automatic testing software.

For additional information about the Z-Interop2 Project, see other parts of this website <http://www.unt.edu/zinterop> or contact Dr. Moen <wemoen@unt.edu>.

William E. Moen, Principal Investigator
Texas Center for Digital Knowledge, School of Library and Information Sciences
University of North Texas