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Thread: Z39.50

Z39.50

From
Matthew Hixson
Date:
I couldn't find anything in the PostgreSQL documentation regarding this
protocol.  Can Postgres natively speak Z39.50 or are there any third party
modules or software that will allow a request from a client application
requesting a query using Z39.50?
  I am currently using Postgres in a production database for one of our
clients.  They are considering using a product called EndNote to perform
searches against their online database.  I have the feeling that they are not
going to be able to do that and I would like to be able to give them an answer
before they go and buy it.
  Thanks for any info.  And if I've posted this to the wrong list could someone
please redirect me to the list which would be able to answer this question.
  Thank you,
     -M@

--
Matthew Hixson - CIO
FroZenWave Communications
http://www.frozenwave.com

Re: [INTERFACES] Z39.50

From
"Thomas G. Lockhart"
Date:
> I couldn't find anything in the PostgreSQL documentation regarding this
> protocol.  Can Postgres natively speak Z39.50 or are there any third party
> modules or software that will allow a request from a client application
> requesting a query using Z39.50?

Postgres does not natively speak z39.50. afaik it is not widely used in
the database community (or at least *my* db circles, which admittedly
are not very wide :) and given that the standard came into existance 20
years ago I would doubt that it is fresh enough to take over the world.

I'm not sure about third party gateways which might translate from
z39.50 to ODBC or native Postgres.

Good luck.

                             - Tom

Re: [INTERFACES] Z39.50

From
"Ross J. Reedstrom"
Date:
Thomas G. Lockhart wrote:
>
> > I couldn't find anything in the PostgreSQL documentation regarding this
> > protocol.  Can Postgres natively speak Z39.50 or are there any third party
> > modules or software that will allow a request from a client application
> > requesting a query using Z39.50?
>
> Postgres does not natively speak z39.50. afaik it is not widely used in
> the database community (or at least *my* db circles, which admittedly
> are not very wide :) and given that the standard came into existance 20
> years ago I would doubt that it is fresh enough to take over the world.

Ah yes, but there are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio... err,
Thomas.

From some brief explorations, it looks like the Librarians have been
using it for a long time, but it is still current. There's the offical
standards site at:

http://lcweb.loc.gov/z3950/agency/

which includes links to software, including free (looks like BSD-like
license, to me) tool kits, if you want to build something, and listing
some software vendors to contact. Looks like it's bigger in Europe than
here in the US.

Since the project I'm currently invoved with has a bibliographic
component, I'm glad you asked this question - I'd never seen this
standard before. I wonder what else the librarians are hiding over there
in that big building...

Ross
--
Ross J. Reedstrom, Ph.D., <reedstrm@rice.edu>
NSBRI Research Scientist/Programmer
Computer and Information Technology Institute
Rice University, 6100 S. Main St.,  Houston, TX 77005