MDID 3 Flyer

Several people have asked for a PDF version of the MDID 3 flyer distributed during the VRA conference. You can view it online and download the PDF.

VRA 2010 MDID Users Group Presentation

Here is the presentation from last week's MDID Users Group at the VRA conference in Atlanta. Session notes will follow soon.

VRA 2010 MDID Users Group Presentation

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See us at VRA Atlanta

We'll be showing the latest developments on MDID during the following sessions:

Thursday, March 18, 2:00-3:30pm
SIG Meeting: MDID Users Group

Friday, March 19, 3:30-5:00pm
Ask the Experts Forum: MDID

Friday, March 19, 5:00-6:30pm
SIG Meeting: VRA Digital Matchmaking Group

See the complete conference schedule

MDID 3 as a platform for building innovative multimedia applications

This post has originally been published in the February 2010 issue of Images, the newsletter of the VRA.

MDID 3 will feature an updated version of the familiar interface for discovering images, building and presenting slideshows and managing collections. Beyond the familiar, MDID 3 will also serve as a powerful platform for building innovative, web-based multimedia applications. The MDID 3 core stores, manages and delivers data records and media files; web developers will be able to author customized user interfaces to take advantage of specific MDID 3 core functionality.


The Center for Instructional Technology (CIT) at James Madison University (JMU) is currently using the MDID 3 platform to power JMUtube, a web application that allows faculty to upload and manage video and audio files for delivery to students through a variety of venues, including class web sites and Blackboard. JMUtube takes advantage of the MDID 3 core to store video and audio files and associated metadata. It also uses MDID 3 to manage user accounts and create thumbnail derivatives for audio and video files. JMUtube users, who for the most part are not teaching with still images and do not need the full functionality of MDID, may not even be aware that they are using an MDID-powered web application.


CIT is also using the MDID 3 platform to create a highly specialized oral history web application for history faculty. All audio files and associated metadata and audio transcripts are stored and managed by the MDID 3 engine. A novel interface allows faculty and students in the history department to synchronize audio time lines with typed transcripts. A web page for each composite record allows users to listen to the audio recording as the transcript automatically scrolls in step with the recording. Such functionality is beyond the scope of the traditional MDID web application, since it is only applicable to a relatively small set of records.

JMUtube and the oral history project exemplify the manner in which MDID can move beyond a single discipline into multiple disciplines. Imaginative faculty and skilled programmers will be able to collaborate to create innovative and useful multimedia applications. Once completed, the applications can be easily shared with other institutions as add-ons to existing MDID 3 installations.

VRA Conference Atlanta 2010

The schedule for the 2010 VRA Annual Conference in Atlanta, GA is available online.

MDID will continue to be represented with the MDID Users Group meeting on Thursday, March 18, from 2:00 pm to 3:30 pm.

We will also be part of an Ask the Experts session, probably the one on Friday, March 19, from 3:30 pm to 5:00 pm, although this could still change.

Hope to see you there!

Development Update

Development work on MDID 3 has continued throughout the summer and fall and we have made significant progress with the application core and frontend support. The MDID user interface and management tools are only partially complete at this time and require some additional work.

At this time we are targeting the 2010 Annual VRA Conference in March for the official release.

We are also experimenting with MDID 3 as the backend for different multimedia web applications here at JMU. We will shortly switch JMUtube, our faculty video site, to use MDID 3 as the data management system. The Shenandoah Valley Oral History Project will be another showcase for this new functionality.

Attending OSCON in San Jose, CA

I will be attending OSCON in San Jose, CA from July 20 to 24. If anybody is also attending or lives in the area and is interested in setting up an MDID Birds of a Feather session, please comment below or email mdid@jmu.edu.