TECHnology
- Held kickoff meeting in September
- Lead developer gave presentation on new technology stack goals and progress
September 2025 Program Update
BTAA Geoportal Video Tutorials: Step-by-Step Search Walkthroughs
Section titled “BTAA Geoportal Video Tutorials: Step-by-Step Search Walkthroughs”To make the BTAA Geoportal even easier to use, we’ve launched a new series of video tutorials demonstrating common BTAA Geoportal search strategies applied to real datasets. These short walkthroughs show practical techniques for combining keywords, filters, and map-based searches to quickly locate the data you need.
Watch the full series on our YouTube Channel: @GeoBTAA
1. Introduction to the BTAA Geoportal
An overview of the BTAA-GIN, who we serve, and how the Geoportal connects geospatial resources across Big Ten universities.
2. Searching for Vector Datasets
Learn to locate vector datasets showing 1930s-1940s redlining maps for Pennsylvania cities, using keywords, facets, and the map filter.
3. Finding Historic Maps
Find digitized historic campus maps from Big Ten universities using keyword searches, filters, and the map interface.
4. Finding Land Cover Data from LiDAR
Search for Iowa’s 2009 land cover dataset derived from LiDAR returns, using both keyword and facet search methods.
The tutorial series includes:
- Intro to the Geoportal: What it is and how to get started
- Vector Dataset Search: Finding redlining maps for Pennsylvania cities
- Historic Map Search: Exploring digitized campus maps from Big Ten universities
- LiDAR Land Cover Search: Using Iowa’s 2009 dataset as an example
Designed for researchers, students, and librarians alike, these tutorials help users navigate the Geoportal more effectively and discover datasets with confidence.
Program Activities
Section titled “Program Activities”Committees
Section titled “Committees”Community Engagement
- Held open discussion of charter language, outreach priorities, and content strategies (Collection Blog; LibGuides best practices)
- Next: Plan to review charter and goals for the coming year
Knowledge
Discussed indexing geospatial data from open-access ETDs in the Geoportal
Coordination
Did not meet
Workgroups
Section titled “Workgroups”
Geodata Collection Workgroup
Section titled “Geodata Collection Workgroup”- Held a successful meeting with Minneapolis, who agreed to serve as our first data provider partner.
Service Model Collaboration Workgroup
Section titled “Service Model Collaboration Workgroup”- Shared highlights at the Program Team meeting that sparked a group conversation about opportunities and next steps
Geospatial Data Citation Workgroup
Section titled “Geospatial Data Citation Workgroup”- Developed a prototype for a data citation tool hosted on the GIN website
- Discussed key elements of a data citations and reviewed best practices from other guides
BTAA Geoportal
Section titled “BTAA Geoportal”Analytics Statistics
Section titled “Analytics Statistics”Top internal search keywords
Section titled “Top internal search keywords”- Sanborn
- relief
- Middle East
- pennsylvania
- cairo
- trail
- baltimore county
- allegheny county
- Tacoma
- Egypt
Collections
Section titled “Collections”Total records as of October 1, 2025: 116,953
Harvesting Activities
Section titled “Harvesting Activities”| Title | Records added | Records retired |
|---|---|---|
| 2025-09-02 Scan ArcGIS Hubs | 219 | 31 |
| 2025-09-09 Scan ArcGIS Hubs | 45 | 61 |
| 2025-09-16 Scan ArcGIS Hubs | 49 | 73 |
| Reharvest Mapping Inequality | 314 | 538 |
| Reharvest Newberry Library | 0 | 0 |
| Datasets (USA and international | 8012 | 2 |
| Total | 8639 | 705 |
Web Development
Section titled “Web Development”GeoBTAA API development in progress
Section titled “GeoBTAA API development in progress”- established a test suite (pytest)
- enhanced documentation (https://gin.btaa.org/ld/)
- Developing spatial facets
React user interface development in progress
Section titled “React user interface development in progress”- Added links and web services previews
- established test suite vitest)
- new admin view of test fixture records