Conversion
The conversion department handles the XML structuring of publications. It also optimizes files for navigation and search purposes, creates links between articles, and carries out IdRef alignment and database indexing.
XML Conversion
Each publication distributed on Cairn.info is first converted into XML according to a common structure: the EruditArticle DTD.
This fine-grained structure enables a consistent and scalable interface, advanced semantic search, and various intra- and intertextual navigation features.
The conversion process also involves enriching publications with various identifiers and information to facilitate and promote their online distribution.
Each publication distributed on Cairn.info is first converted to XML using a common structure: the DTD EruditArticle.
This detailed structuring enables a homogeneous and scalable interface, advanced semantic search functionalities, and various intra- and intertextual navigation features.
Enrichment
Digital processing is no longer just about providing easy, user-friendly access to content. In the age of AI, it enables the creation of a genuine knowledge base, rich in bibliographic and semantic metadata. The R&D division of Cairn.info (resulting from the merger/acquisition of Isako) is the primary user of the value thus created, translating it into functionalities. The conversion team is processing/converting more and more content internally from PDF files using the Isako Studio tool.
See also
IdRef
Since 2021, Cairn.info has been working to align its author database with the IdRef reference system to enhance quality, interoperability, and discoverability.
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IdRef - Identifiers and Repositories for Higher Education and Research
IdRef is a public interface for consulting authority records produced by member institutions of the French higher education and research documentary networks (Sudoc, Calames, Star). IdRef is available for authorized professional users to create/correct/enrich authority records. IdRef also provides a range of freely available services to facilitate data reuse (triplestore data.idref.fr, OAI-PMH repository, APIs).
www.idref.fr
For our conversion teams, this involves assigning a PPN identifier (linked to the French SUDOC catalog) to the authors of each online publication (book, journal issue, article, or contribution to a collective work), thereby enriching the database managed by the Agence bibliographique de l’enseignement supérieur (ABES; French Bibliographic Agency for Higher Education).
This alignment allows us to improve the quality of our database by distinguishing homonyms and eliminating duplicates. It also enables us to offer our users links to publications by these authors on other French-language platforms and—thanks to interoperability between IdRef and other identifiers (ORCID, VIAF, etc.)—to other international portals.
Book reviews
The BOLERO project: Improving the visibility of book reviews
With the support of the Centre National du Livre (CNL; National Book Center), in 2022 Cairn.info launched the BOLERO project to create an open database of links between reviews and books. The objective is to enhance the visibility and interactivity of the network of references between book reviews published in Francophone humanities and social science journals and the works themselves, regardless of the platform hosting them.
