What is DCAT?

The DSpace Community Advisory Team (DCAT) represents the interests of repository managers and administrators across the globe and, indirectly, DSpace end users. DCAT is a permanent DSpace Working Group sponsored by the DSpace Steering Group that advises DSpace Program governance groups. We welcome feedback and participation from anyone in the community.

Date & Time

• Tuesday, September 9, 2025, 12:00 Eastern Time
• See the world clock to determine the meeting time for your location.
• Meeting length: one hour

Join information:

We will be using the DCAT Chair's Zoom Room for our meeting.

Join from PC, Mac, Linux, iOS or Android: https://arizona.zoom.us/j/81605358751 (Meeting ID: 816 0535 8751 Passcode: dspace)

Additional ways to join: DCAT Chair Zoom Room

Agenda:

• Announcements
   
  • Housekeeping
    • Sign up for the DCAT Google Group: https://groups.google.com/g/DSpaceCommunityAdvisoryTeam
    • Do you have a DSpace wiki account? Email wikihelp@lyrasis.org for an account
    • DSpace Community Events Calendar: https://dspace.org/events/
      
      
  • DCAT Updates
    • DCAT Chair nominations submitted to DSpace Steering Group
    • UX Working Group Final Report on DSpace Steering Group agenda 9/10/2025

• • DSpace 9 Q & A webinar with DSpace Technical Lead Tim Donohue and Program Coordinator Holger Lenz
  • Resources at this link including: 
    • Recording of the webinar
    • Presentation slide deck
    • Q+A Google Document (now updated with answers to all questions)

Upcoming Events:

• • USRN Community Conversation (USRN = US Repository Network)

    • Thursday, September 11 from 2–3pm ET / 11–12pm PT.

    • This session will focus on Repository Management challenges, including:
      • Staffing and expertise
      • Encouraging faculty participation
      • Maintaining metadata quality and consistency
    • Learn more and register: https://sparcopen-org.zoom.us/meeting/register/jnLtz689RgCq4MLDMQYhWw#/registration

• • DSpace Virtual Coffee Hour with Holger Lenz
    • September 16, 2025 - 1:00 pm UTC - 2:00 pm UTC
    • Do you have questions about the DSpace Community? Do you wonder how to get involved? Are you interested in becoming a DSpace member, but are not sure where to start? Join us for the monthly virtual DSpace Coffee Hour!
    • https://dspace.org/events/dspace-virtual-coffee-hour-3-2025-09-16/
      
      

  • 4Science Academy Webinar: DSpace Submission forms: Enhancing GLAM Repositories

    • Discover how tailored submission forms can simplify data entry, improve metadata quality, and empower cultural heritage institutions with more flexible workflows.

    • September 18, 2025 - 10:30 am EDT
    • Learn more and register: https://events.teams.microsoft.com/event/af5b5c6a-2fd4-46ae-a57a-317d753ae957@1d2fb688-47ea-4f12-9da3-c222aa05a78c

• • Exploring the Potential Merger of DSpace and DSpace-CRIS (Q+A Session)
    • September 30, 2025 - 2 pm UTC
    • Learn more and register: https://bit.ly/dspace-merger

• Presentations:
  
  • Error Reporting with HAR Files
    • Kent Gerber, University of Minnesota Libraries, will demonstrate how to use the Chrome browser “Developer Tools” feature to create a HAR file which can be used to report network errors you experience while using DSpace. A HAR (HTTP Archive) file is a JSON-formatted log of a web browser's interaction with a website, capturing network requests and responses to help diagnose performance issues, errors, and other web-related problems. This demonstration continues this topic from the August 2025 DCAT meeting.

• • DSpace Governance
    • Kimberly Chapman, DCAT Chair, will provide a brief outline of DSpace membership and DSpace Governance, especially as related to DCAT.
      • The DCAT Annual Report will be presented at the October meeting, for feedback prior to distribution to the DSpace Steering Group.

• Group Activities

• • Follow up on "Import Metadata from External Sources"
    • This feature is active on https://demo.dspace.org/home for those who wish to troubleshoot issues discussed at the August meeting
    • Continue discussion of developing default Instructional Text to help users understand how to effectively import metadata from external sources
      • See https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Xw9hFujOF-SCFfi0opCLgpUTdodhciXGE0vAXnp6Xw4/edit?usp=sharing

• • Editable Space at Beginning of Submission Forms
    • See https://groups.google.com/g/dspace-community/c/uhZ9pdBJlWk/m/WF5hR9_XCQAJ
      • Has anyone done this in their DSpace repository
      • Is this a feature that DCAT should advocate for?

Notes:

All Open Repositories 2025 Presentations in Zenodo: https://zenodo.org/communities/openrepos/records?q=&f=subject%3AOR2025&l=list&p=1&s=10&sort=newest

Call Attendees

Sarah Barsness

Kimberly Chapman , University of Arizona Libraries

Yohann Cottin, University of Ottawa

Emily Crawford

Vanessa Evers, Georgia Institute of Technology

Allison Fischbach

Paul Gatavu 

James Holobetz 

Erin Jerome UMass Amherst

Iryna Kuchma EIFL

Pierre Lasou 

Colin Lukens

Gary Maixner 

Jordan Piščanc (4Science) 

Anne Shelley 

Peter Sutton-Long University of Cambridge.

Karl Wirth

Phillip Young

Marcella Huggard Lyrasis

Kent Gerber  University of Minnesota

Marianne Reed University of Kansas

Regrets