JIRA Reference: https://jira.duraspace.org/browse/DS-164

Proposed: "[A] web interface for altering input-forms.xml, being able to select an input form "on the fly" based on the type of item being deposited, a web interface to the Configurable Submission System, eliminating the need to restart the server after changes to input-forms.xml and the Configurable Submission System, allowing more configuration (e.g. input-forms.xml, Configurable Submission) and command-line actions (e.g. batch imports) to be pushed down to community and collection administrators, allowing metadata specific to an eperson (e.g. name, metadata fields to exclude) to be stored in that eperson's profile. It was noted that the lack of a web interface to many DSpace configuration files means that repository managers who are not also systems administrators may not be able to configure their installations fully."

DGOC/DCAT review: A small group did an initial review of this on 2 Nov 2010, and while its status was not 100% clear to us, it doesn't appear to have progressed substantially since 2009's Google Summer of Code <https://wiki.duraspace.org/display/DSPACE/Google+Summer+of+Code+2009+Submission+Enhancements>.

Regardless, this would be a welcome change to the current functionality, which requires DSpace collection managers to have XML skills to deal with what can quickly become a very large and unwieldy input-forms.xml document. As a result, this is a barrier to new DSpace users who often can't/don't customize as desired for fear of breaking this file with a single syntax error or a missing bit of punctuation...and as a result bringing down submission capability for their entire installation! We recommend this receive a boost in priority, and if possible build on the GSoC work to implement it in a near-future release, since it would have a high impact on usability.

DCAT initial assessment: Relevant; Medium-High or High priority

Next steps: We would like to hear the community's opinions and thoughts on this, and we'd like to try using the DSpace code committers' method for indicating your level of support, since that will help make it easy for them to understand where we're coming from on these:

• If you agree with the above assessment and have no additional comments, you can simply respond with a +1.
• If you disagree but have no comments, a -1 works, and if you have no opinion at all, 0 is fine. (And encouraged, since that means we know you've had a chance to weigh in.)
• If you do have comments or other ideas, you're not limited to the numbers, of course. So please do share your thoughts!