Skip to main content
OCLC Support

CONTENTdm Overview

  1. Last updated
  2. Save as PDF
Find an overview of the interface and features of CONTENTdm.

Get started with CONTENTdm

See Implementing your Digital Library with CONTENTdm to guide you through key decisions and steps for implementing your digital library.

When you subscribe to CONTENTdm, you will receive a letter with your system access URLs and login information. The Server URL is used to access the CONTENTdm Administration web interface, which is used to manage your collections. The Website URL is the public front-end for your collections.

Your welcome letter contains an initial administrative login account. Use this account to log into the CONTENTdm Administration the first time (Server URL). With this account, you can add more user accounts as described in Users.

Your CONTENTdm subscription includes one OCR license. When you are ready to start using OCR, you will need to request an OCR activation code using the OCR Activation Request Form.

  • Please note that this is not available with no-fee CONTENTdm quickstart.

Your CONTENTdm subscription includes preservation archive functionality. When you are ready to start using preservation features, you will need to request activation using the Preservation Archive Activation Request form. For more information about using CONTENTdm's preservation archive, see the Preservation Archive Getting Started Guide.

  • Please note that this is not available with no-fee CONTENTdm quickstart.

Learning about CONTENTdm

CONTENTdm is a powerful application, with a Project Client and complementary Web services, used for importing metadata and items, and CONTENTdm Administration, from which you administer the server, manage collections, configure the website and work with items. With CONTENTdm, users can be assigned different rights, depending on their job responsibilities.

Connect with fellow CONTENTdm users in the OCLC Community Center.  If you do not yet have an OCLC Services account for CONTENTdm Community Center access, please request one now.  After you submit the web form, you will receive your new account within 4-5 business days.

Project Client

The Project Client enables you to set up projects and import and catalog items before uploading them to the CONTENTdm Server. Items can be files consisting of one page or image, URLS when streaming media, PDF files, EAD files, metadata only or compound objects, consisting of two or more pages bound together with XML. Files can be archived when imported, which requires that the collection be configured to enable the Archival File Manager. Additionally, display images can be automatically created when adding full resolution images. A CONTENTdm user then uploads items from the project to the pending queue on the Server where they remain until they are reviewed and approved and become part of a collection.

The Project Settings Manager enables you to establish consistent processing and other settings to make your workflow efficient. For example, Metadata Templates are used to easily input identical metadata for items in a project. The metadata must be entered into the Metadata Templates before an item is added to the project. Metadata may also be added using the Item Editing tab or tab-delimited text files. You also can create image rights (banding, branding, watermarking) that can be reused consistently for a collection.

CONTENTdm Administration

In CONTENTdm Administration, you can administer the server, the collection, and the items.

With Server Administration, create new collections, delete existing collections, edit settings (including harvesting and the stop list), configure website settings, assign user rights, view reports, register your server and see server information.

With Collection Administration, configure collections (including field properties—setting full text searching and creating controlled vocabularies—display image settings, archival file management, image rights settings, and PDF conversion), configure website settings, view collection reports, and export data.

With Item Administration, approve items for a collection, build the text index, edit items, and unlock items. Create and edit items, one at a time, with the Web editor.

CONTENTdm and WorldCat Digital Collection Gateway Overview
January 17, 2017

Play recording (55 minutes - WebEx)

  • January 17, 2017

This presentation provides an overview of CONTENTdm® and the WorldCat® Digital Collection Gateway. It includes discussion of the functionality built into the CONTENTdm Administration modules, including Collection and Website Configuration. A live demonstration using the very latest OCLC Hosted CONTENTdm version includes adding digital items to a Collection both with the web-based “add” function. Both simple and compound objects are used to build and demonstrate browsing and searching the CONTENTdm website.

Because CONTENTdm supports the Open Archives Initiative’s protocol for metadata harvesting, (OAI-PMH) published collections may be shared through the WorldCat sync and OAI functions. The presentation ends with a brief look at CONTENTdm item metadata as displayed in WorldCat after being harvested through the Gateway according to this standard protocol.