iVia

Chapter 1: Introduction

iVia is an open source system for building Internet subject portals and virtual libraries. It has been designed by and for librarians, with the intent of fostering collaboration while maintaining a system of rigorous editorial controls. iVia was created by librarians at the the University of California, Riverside, and is used by this institution as well as collaborators at other academic libraries and institutions worldwide, to build and maintain the INFOMINE Scholarly Internet Resource Portal (http://infomine.ucr.edu/).

This manual describes the tools available through the iVia Adders' Web Site. They are provided to help librarians efficiently discover and describe Internet resources, and can be used to build Internet portals and virtual libraries for any audience or application. If your institution uses iVia to create a virtual library, you may also wish to prepare a set of editorial guidelines similar to the INFOMINE Editorial Guidelines or the Librarians' Index to the Internet's Manual for Creating Records.

The manual begins by explaining how to log into the iVia Adders' Web Site and set up your account. This section and the rest of the manual are illustrated with examples from the iVia installation that powers INFOMINE. The remaining chapters provide an overview of the iVia Adders' menu, which is the principle means of navigating the iVia Adders' tools, then explain each of the tools in turn.