This is a standard API for copying records from one system to another. It is the most common API in the cultural heritage sector for aggregating data. Aggregation refers to copying information from multiple systems (usually with each having their own website) into one central system (again, usually with its own website). Sites such as Culture Grid and DigitalNZ use OAI-PMH as one method for aggregating records from many organisations.
How the Open Archives Initiative Protocol for Metadata Harvesting works
OAI-PMH follows the usual pattern for an API. There are pre-set methods (e.g. Get record will retrieve the details of one record, List records will search for a group of records). The response format is XML with the response content being Dublin Core. Dublin Core covers basic descriptive fields such as dc:identifier (eHive’s Object Number field), dc:title (eHive’s Name/Title) and dc:creator (eHive’s Primary Maker field).
Our implementation of OAI-PMH provides read-only access only to existing public records over HTTP.
You can read more on the official site for OAI-PMH.
eHive implementation of OAI-PMH
Harvest records from one account
Individual accounts with public records allowing third party can be harvested using the base url “https://ehive.com/oai-pmh/accounts/[accountId]
e.g. “https://ehive.com/oai-pmh/accounts/3404?verb=Identify”
Harvest records from one community
All public records from all accounts allowing third party access in specific community can be harvested using the base url “https://ehive.com/oai-pmh/communities/[communityid]”
e.g. “https://ehive.com/oai-pmh/communities/1016?verb=Identify”
Harvest records from all of eHive
All public records from all accounts allowing third party access can be harvested using the base url “https://ehive.com/oai-pmh”
e.g. “https://ehive.com/oai-pmh?verb=Identify”
eHive account holders can check their third party access setting by going to ‘Edit My Profile > Preferences and Data Access’.
