VLA Technical Services & Technology Forum Presents: “Understanding XML” with Matthew Gibson

Randolph-Macon College, Ashland, VA

This one-day hands-on workshop will explore XML with a specific focus on fundamentals of design, markup, and use. The workshop will explain why XML is important, particularly in the domain of describing, storing, and delivering information in a library setting.

XML Workshop Flyer (please print and post in your library.)

Topics to be covered include:

• XML: What is it?

• What is the difference between XML and HTML?

• Why should librarians care about XML?

• Understanding XML validation: What is it and why is it important?

Prerequisites: No prior knowledge of XML is required; familiarity with markup languages such as HTML is helpful. All students should be very comfortable navigating Windows operating system, and should be able to save files from the internet to the local computer, and understand how to find and open those files. The computers in the workshop classroom run Windows 7.

Matthew Gibson is Director of Digital Programs at the Virginia Foundation for the Humanities (VFH). At the VFH, he oversees Encyclopedia Virginia, a digital publication about Virginia history and culture, and guides the short- and long-term planning for the organization’s digital efforts and scholarly communications. Matthew is an experienced conference presenter and author in the field of digital library standards. For the past nine years he has taught week-long XML application building workshops as an independent consultant and for the Association of Research Libraries. He holds a Ph.D. in English from the University of Virginia.

VLA Members: $85 per person / Non-members: $125 per person (Includes lunch in R-MC dining hall)

Click for online registration form.

Click for directions to Randolph-Macon College Library.

(Parking readily available during Randolph-Macon College’s Spring Break.)

Questions? Please contact Lynda Wright, Chair of the VLA Technical Services & Technology Forum for the Virginia Library Association at lwwright@rmc.edu