Need research help? Dig in the DiRT
Fondren Library develops research aid for tools of the trade

BY LISA SPIRO
Special to the Rice News

To help make sense of the plentitude of online research resources, Fondren Library launched DiRT, or Digital Research Tools, last summer. The wiki, an easy-to-edit collaborative Web site, is a central information source about the tools researchers need.

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The site catalogs several hundred tools according to the tasks that researchers want to accomplish — from “analyzing statistics to managing bibliographic information to visualizing data” — to help researchers identify and select the most relevant tools for their searches. DiRT provides a short description of each tool, including whether it is free and what platforms it works on. In addition, DiRT offers a growing number of short software reviews targeted toward researchers.  

As a wiki, DiRT enables anyone with an account, which can be created on DiRT, to contribute information about their favorite or least favorite tools. People typically learn about handy tools by talking with colleagues; DiRT takes that information-sharing to the online environment, enabling researchers to find applications that other researchers find useful.

More than 100 people have accounts on DiRT. The contributors provide new information, edit contributions by others and polish the design of the wiki. For instance, a researcher in France developed a category focused on visual search tools, while a librarian at the University of Texas-Arlington contributed the logo and graphic design for the site. DiRT is being built through a volunteer effort, at very little cost. Fondren is providing a few hundred dollars for a professional account on PBworks, a wiki-hosting service. 

DiRT is already generating a positive buzz. It was included in the Chronicle of Higher Education’s “Wired Campus” blog, mentioned in the “Digital Campus” podcast and featured on MetaFilter, an online community that highlights cool new online content. It also earned a positive review from the Scout Report, which evaluates educational Web sites. The director of the National Endowment for the Humanities’ Office of Digital Humanities praised DiRT, as did one of the leaders of the Humanities, Arts, Science and Technology Advanced Collaboratory.

As DiRT deepens, Fondren Library plans to add more reviews, provide screen shots and user guides, highlight leading tools in each category and expand the listing of tools.

Visit DiRT at http://digitalresearchtools.pbworks.com/.

— Lisa Spiro is director of the Digital Media Center.