As a consortium, the Texas Digital Library depends upon the active participation of its members and users to be successful. TDL Users Groups, Working Groups, and committees provide opportunities for member contributions focused on particular services, professional roles, and projects.

Current Active User Groups and Working Groups

Vireo Users Group

The Vireo Users Group gathers and prioritizes constituent needs to guide TDL on future development of the Vireo ETD submission and management software. It also provides avenues for the exchange of information about Vireo use and development.

The goals and major activities of the VUG include:

• Prioritized lists of user stories are given to the TDL development team.
• A vote on how product enhancements should be prioritized is conducted once a year. The Steering Committee selects the enhancements to be included in the vote.
• Meetings are held at the annual user conference. These meetings give members a forum to express opinions and discuss issues, in person, with other members.
• The list of enhancements and other documentation are organized and made available on the VUG website.

Metadata Working Group

The Metadata Working Group provides the TDL with general metadata expertise and addresses the following needs:

• developing best practices for metadata;
• educating stakeholders on all aspects of metadata;
• providing guidance on current status and future trends in metadata development.

Preservation Working Group

The Preservation Working Group helps to guide development of preservation policy and provides feedback to the TDL development team about member needs for preservation infrastructure.

TDL Services User Group

The TDL Services User Group is a community for librarians and library staff responsible for implementing TDL scholarly communication services, including Open Journal Systems, Open Conference Systems, WordPress, MediaWiki, and DSpace.  The group provides guidance to the staff of the TDL regarding needs, changes, and support required for the successful implementation of these services on member campuses and functions as a support network for managers and advocates of TDL services.

Other Groups

Bridge Groups

Bridge groups communicate and interpret the work of the TDL for their local institutions and guide the integration of their institutional repositories with the TDL. Thus bridge groups are comprised of staff from a single TDL member institution, and the group’s focus is on local issues rather than TDL-wide initiatives. Bridge Groups can remain active for as long as the institution requires them.