Development efforts for Vireo 1.8 are continuing this summer, with completion of the new code scheduled for fall 2012 and implementation thereafter.
Developers at TDL, Texas A&M University, the University of Illinois, and MIT have contributed code to the current development effort, with TDL software developer Dan Galewsky now serving as project lead.
The team has substantially recreated the student submission functionality and administrative interface and will work going forward on functionality related to faculty approval and publication of approved ETDs to an institutional repository. The team will also develop a testing and implementation plan for Vireo installations hosted by the TDL.
The new version aims to be a “functional clone” of the current software, and will have a familiar look-and-feel that will not include major new functionality. However, the newer version will be independent of DSpace (unlike the current version) and will give developers greater simplicity and flexibility in future development efforts. Some bug fixes and minor improvements will also be included in the 1.8 release.