The Burrokeet project is an implementation of a software tool to facilitate the creation of Content Packages, that is sets of documents about a given subject. These content packages can then be reused in a variety of situations. The idea of a content package is modt often used in the domain of Learning Objects where they are used in Learning Content Management Systems . However, they can be equally well applied in any area in which content needs to be shared between uses.
Burrokeet provides a number of unique features to assist in the development of Content Packages. It focusses on removing the need for content authors to concern themselves with where the content may be used and how it will be formatted in that environment. The goal of Burrokeet is to allow authors to use whatever tools they are currently familiar with to develop their content (currently supported formats include MS Office, Open Office, HTML, XML, Docbook, various Wiki languages, Plain Old Documentation, SVG, ASCII Art and basic text - see the [Burrokeet] site for full details).
The Editor of the Content Package uses the Burrokeet application to integrate documents into a uniform package. [Burrokeet] provides a set of tools to ease the development of a content package and related Metadata (computing). When building a content package editors can reuse existing Content Packages in their entirety, or specific sections can be chosen for use (even down to single sentences in single documents).
When someone wishes to publish a content package, [Burrokeet] is used to repackage the content in a format applicable to its end use. For example, it can create HTML pages for web sites, PDF or PS documets for printing, slides for presentations and many other formats (see [Burrokeet] web site for a list of supported output formats).
The Burrokeet project is an example of the power of Open Source software development. It incorporates a large amount of code from other Open Source projects thereby enabling a highly advanced and complete system to be built in a very short time at very low cost. Most notably [Apache Forrest], [Apache Cocoon], [Jetty] and [Eclipse].
The project was originally started by Ross Gardler a UK based consultant with staff at the [UWI].
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