View source for OATP FAQ

[[File:oad2.jpeg|60px]] This list is part of the [http://oad.simmons.edu Open Access Directory].
[[Category:Research about OA]] [[Category:Working for OA]]

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* This is a section within the larger [[OA tracking project]] (OATP).

* This FAQ has been rewritten to reflect the transition of OATP from its old platform, [http://www.connotea.org/ Connotea], to its new platform, [http://bit.ly/tagteam-intro TagTeam]. But so far it only covers the basics. We will enlarge it over time.

== How do I get started? ==

'''To get started ''as a reader''''', just start reading the [http://oad.simmons.edu/oadwiki/OATP_links#Versions_of_the_primary_project_feed  primary project feed]. 
* You can subscribe to the feed in many different formats, including RSS, Atom, JSONP, Twitter, and Email. If you don't want to subscribe to anything, then just bookmark the HTML edition, which is organized like a blog page, and visit periodically to catch up.

'''To get started ''as a tagger''''' (someone who helps build the feeds for readers), just start tagging OA-related news and comment. 
* Although OATP runs on [http://bit.ly/tagteam-intro TagTeam], you needn't use TagTeam as your tagging platform for OATP. You may use any tagging platform that creates RSS feeds from each tag.
* Once you decide which tagging platform to use, see the [http://cyber.law.harvard.edu/hoap/TagTeam_basics#Tagging TagTeam manual on tagging] for instructions on the next steps, whether you want to tag from TagTeam itself or another tagging platform. 
* Familiarize yourself with the most common [[OATP_tags|project tags]], as well as the [[OATP_tips|tips]] and [[OATP_conventions|conventions]] for using these tags.

== What's in the primary project feed? ==

The [[OATP_links#Versions_of_the_primary_ project_feed|primary project feed]] includes all the items tagged with ''oa.new'' by participating taggers. It doesn't include all new OA developments, although that's the goal.  It only includes those new developments noticed and tagged by project participants.

== What's in the secondary project feeds? ==

The primary feed is for new developments about OA, regardless of their subtopic. The [[OATP_links#Versions_of_the_secondary_ project_feeds|secondary feeds]] are for OA subtopics. For example, you can subscribe to a feed of items tagged with ''[http://tagteam.harvard.edu/hubs/3/tag/oa.biology oa.biology]'' or ''[http://tagteam.harvard.edu/hubs/3/tag/oa.brazil oa.brazil]'' or ''[http://tagteam.harvard.edu/hubs/3/tag/oa.business_models oa.business_models]'' or any other project tag. You can even create a remix feed consisting of any combination of project tags.

== The feeds are missing things. How can we make them more comprehensive? ==

Become a tagger and tag items yourself. Recruit other taggers.
<!-- == The feed is too large. How can I track just a subset of it? ==
Subscribe the secondary feeds of your choice.  
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<!-- You can slim down the project feed even further by using [http://pipes.yahoo.com/ Yahoo Pipes] to filter the project feed for certain keywords.  For example, you could create a custom feed that only contained the words "repository", "journal", and "policy", or any other combination of words in any Boolean relationship. Your custom feed will draw from all the items in the full project feed, not just from those tagged with particular subtopic tags. If use of the subtopic tags you care most about is scattered or inconsistent, this is the best way to create a custom subset feed.  -->
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When you build a custom feed, add it to the [[OATP mashups]] page at the OAD, so that others can benefit from it as well.  Also check that section to see what other custom feeds are already available.  -->
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One goal for the future is to incorporate user ratings so that you can subscribe to the full project feed but only view the subset of items with a rating above a certain level. -->

== How do I search the project feeds? ==

Use the TagTeam search engine for the [http://tagteam.harvard.edu/hubs/oatp OATP hub] (at the bottom of the left sidebar). You needn't be a registered TagTeam user to do so. The search engine covers all the OATP tag records back to the launch of the project in 2009. For more details, see the section of the [http://cyber.law.harvard.edu/hoap/TagTeam_basics TagTeam manual] on [http://cyber.law.harvard.edu/hoap/TagTeam_basics#Searching searching].

== Does OATP support user-defined tags? ==

Yes. See the [[OATP_conventions|conventions]] for creating new project tags. 

When OATP launched in 2009, it had only one official tag, ''oa.new''. All the rest were user-defined. Now it has a [[OATP_tags|longer list of official tags]], in effect codifying the usage of its users into a standard vocabulary. But it continues to support user-defined tags and always will. 

One reason we developed [http://bit.ly/tagteam-intro TagTeam] was to support a vision of "folksonomy in / ontology out" and get the best of both worlds. TagTeam allows us to convert deprecated tags to approved tags, manually or automatically, and we take advantage of that power. Note that these changes only affect TagTeam's copies of the tag records. Tags made for the OATP hub from another platform, such as CiteULike or Delicious, remain unchanged.

== What's the difference between OATP and TagTeam? ==

OATP is a social-tagging project to create real-time alerts to new OA-related developments and to organize knowledge of the field. TagTeam is the software on which OATP runs. 

OATP could be run on almost any tagging platform, and when it launched in 2009 it ran on Connotea. However, existing tagging platforms did not have all the features we wanted and eventually we developed our own, TagTeam. For more background on TagTeam itself, and the features we wanted that didn't exist in other tagging platforms, see our [http://bit.ly/tagteam-intro Introduction to TagTeam].

TagTeam is a general-purpose tool, and not limited to one project (like OATP) or one topic (like open access). It supports social-tagging projects on any topic, and calls them "hubs". OATP is one hub within TagTeam.