Greenstone 2 can export collections to CD/DVD-ROMs.
NOTE:
Collections with Lucene as indexer and/or JDBM as database type won't work with Greenstone 2 collections exported to CD-ROM. Lucene and JDBM work with Java and Java is not part of the export, so searching (lucene) and browsing (jdbm) won't work.
We advise that collections built with lucene and/or jdbm are rebuilt with mgpp as indexer and gdbm as database before exporting.
In Windows:
cd C:\Users\<username>\Greenstone setup
In Linux, cd to Greenstone directory:
source setup.bash
Move into the directory of the collection you want to export:
cd collect\<collection-name>
Greenstone collections can be exported and written into a CD/DVD that can run independently on Windows machines.
Choose File → Write CD/DVD image…. In the resulting popup window, select the collection or collections that you wish to export by ticking their check boxes. You can optionally enter a name for the CD-ROM: this is the name that will appear in the menu when the CD-ROM is run. If a name is not entered, the default Greenstone Collections will be used. You can also specify whether the resulting CD-ROM will install files onto the host machine when used or not. Click <Write CD/DVD image> to start the export process.
The necessary files for export are written to:
Greenstone → tmp → exported_xxx
where xxx will be similar to the name you have entered. If you didn't specify a name for the CD-ROM, then the folder name will be exported_collections.
You need to use your own computer's software to write these on to CD-ROM. On Windows XP this ability is built into the operating system: assuming you have a CD-ROM or DVD writer insert a blank disk into the drive and drag the contents of exported_xxx into the folder that represents the disk.
The result will be a self-installing Windows Greenstone CD-ROM or DVD, which starts the installation process as soon as it is placed in the drive.
The objectives versus what has been implemented so far
In short, GS3 is still be able to produce content for discs that can run on machines running the same OS as where the content was generated. This needs to be tested to confirm it still works.
Assuming the feature is still functioning, which it was when last tested on Linux, Mac and Windows on 7th-9th Oct 2015, this is one step up from what GS2 was able to do, which is to only output windows-compatible disc content.
Instructions
The very first time you run gs3-server.sh, it can take some time for it to set things up: it needs to copy a lot of files to your machine's temp area. In my case, the /tmp/greenstone folder is 134MB. But it would depend on how big the log files end up getting.
The cumulative changes made to get GS3 working off a disc can be seen at trac changesets 30236-30304 to build.xml.
Be aware that the OS on which the GS3 is installed, and which is the GS3 that's transferred to disc, should match the OS on which the GS3 will end up running. So assuming that the windows and mac GS3s can run off CDs as well, you'll perhaps want to install all OS versions for 32/64 bit onto a DVD. The windows binary should work irrespective of the bitness of the binary vs the machine it is run on.
Current situation as at Oct 2015 Tested writing out to CDRW a linux GS3 binary installation containing the lucene demo collection. Also tested Mac and Windows. The above all worked on these OS when tested around Oct 2015. Specifics:
The one thing remaining to test is to create a universal binary that includes all the 64 bit Win/Lin/Mac bin subfolders and combines their lib folders, and create a universal binary that includes all the 32 bit versions, and test both of those.
Go to the GLI, choose File-"Write CD/DVD image" from the menu. The window "Write CD/DVD image" will pop up and require you to fill in some information.
Start a CD/DVD recorder software, add the myCollects folder into the CD/DVD, then click the button to burn a CD/DVD.
myCollects/Setup.exe (if necessary, install some files to speed up the launch)
myCollects/gsdl/server.exe (directly enter into the library)
Creating CD/DVD-ROM's from Collections
NB - the plug-in does not work from remote machines - you must use the GLI on the server itself, or alternately use the commandline.
The Greenstone digital library software itself comes on a CD-ROM, and you or your system manager have probably installed it on your system, following the instructions in the Greenstone Digital Library Installer's Guide. If so, Greenstone is already installed on your computer and you should skip the rest of this section.
Some Greenstone collections come on a self-contained Greenstone CD-ROM that includes enough of the software to run just that collection. To use it, simply put it into the CD-ROM drive on any Windows PC. Most likely (if “autorun” is enabled on your PC), a window will appear inviting you to install the Greenstone software. If not, find the CD-ROM disk drive (on current Windows systems you can get this by clicking on the My Computer icon on the desktop) and double-click it, then the Setup.exe file inside it. The Greenstone Setup program will be entered, which guides you through the setup procedure. Most people respond yes to all the questions.
When the installation procedure has finished, you'll find the library in the Programs submenu of the Windows Start menu, under the name of the collection (for example, “Development Library” or “United Nations University”).
Once the software has been installed, the library will be entered automatically every time you re-insert the CD-ROM if autorun is enabled.
Some notes on customising export - specifically for DSpacePlugout, but also applicable elsewhere;
collects/<collectname>/perllib/plugouts
The tutorial on moving a collection from Greenstone to DSpace demonstrates how to export a collection via the commandline.
The following tutorials involve exporting collections: