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Tools user guide

See also: Importing data · Exporting data · Developer tool catalog

Tools are the buttons that extend Dédalo with focused, task-shaped jobs — import a batch of files, export a section to a spreadsheet, translate a field, transcribe an interview, revert a mistake. This section is the user guide: what each tool is for, when to reach for it, and how to run it step by step in the interface. For the internals — the API actions, registration and security contracts — see the developer tool catalog.

How tools appear

A tool attaches itself to a section, a component or an area without that element having to know about it. Depending on how it is registered, its button surfaces in one of a few places:

  • On the section toolbar — section-wide tools (export, print, import, propagate…).
  • In the inspector panel — tools that act on the selected record or element.
  • Inline on a component — tools that act on one field (translate, rotate an image, indexation…).
  • In the username menu — the personal tools (your own account panel).

Some tools open in their own window; some run long jobs in the background and report progress. Each page below says exactly where its tool shows up and what it needs. Many tools require a permission level or an administrator/developer role — the page notes when that is the case.

Import

Bring data into Dédalo from outside files and other installations.

  • CSV import — import a CSV (notably a tool_export Dédalo Raw export, edited in a spreadsheet) back into a section, cell by cell, with languages preserved.
  • File import — ingest a batch of uploaded media files into a media section, reading metadata and matching or creating records.
  • MARC21 import — load a .mrc bibliographic catalogue and map its fields to components.
  • RDF import — import an RDF/OWL graph, mapping classes and properties to components.
  • Zotero import — import a Zotero bibliography export into the Publications section.

Export and publishing

Get data and media out of Dédalo, and prepare it for print or the public site.

  • Export — turn the current selection of a section into a spreadsheet-style flat table (CSV/XLSX/…), or a raw CSV the CSV import tool loads back (a backup is the archive door, not an export).
  • Print — design a paginated report layout for a section and print it (or save the layout as a reusable template).
  • Diffusion — inspect how a section is mapped to the public diffusion targets.
  • PDF extractor — pull the text out of PDF files so it can be indexed and searched.

Media

Work with the image, audio and video files attached to records.

  • Media versions — manage the qualities and versions of a media file: rebuild, delete, rotate, fix headers.
  • Posterframe — capture a thumbnail from an audio/video file at a chosen moment.
  • Image rotation — rotate and crop an image across all its quality levels.
  • Upload — the post-upload step that files a freshly uploaded file into storage.
  • QR — the sample/base tool (developer reference).

Thesaurus and ontology

Organise records into hierarchies and shape the schema.

  • Hierarchy generator — build a custom ontology or virtual section from existing real sections.
  • Cataloging — drag and drop records from source sections into a target hierarchy.
  • Ontology — parse ontology section records into the runtime table (developer/administrator).
  • Ontology parser — inspect and rebuild the runtime ontology (developer/administrator).
  • Label authoring — author a tool's multi-language interface labels.

Transcription and indexation

Turn audio/video and documents into searchable, indexed text.

  • Transcription — extract PDF text and automatically transcribe audio, with subtitle output.
  • Subtitles — edit and generate subtitles tied to an audiovisual transcription.
  • Indexation — index a component's text against thesaurus terms.
  • Timecode shift — shift every timecode tag in a transcription by an offset.
  • Transcript print — produce a printable transcript or VTT subtitle file.
  • Epigraphy transcription — transcribe coin legends and epigraphic elements using glyph sets.

Data operations

Batch edits, history and maintenance across many records at once.

  • Identify — find the records most likely to be the same type as the one you have open, with the reason for every candidate.
  • Propagate component data — replace, add or delete a component's data across every record that matches a search.
  • Time machine — browse the full change history of a record or component and revert to any past state.
  • Update cache — regenerate or clean component caches in bulk (administrator).
  • Order coins — group and sort numismatic objects by weight, diameter and type.

Language

Translate data between the project's languages.

Account, AI and system

  • User panel — your personal account panel, from the username menu.
  • AI assistant — the in-app chat assistant for search, navigation and confirmed edits.
  • Site builder — build a public website over the published data.
  • Error report — report and inspect application errors (administrator/developer).
  • Tool template — the scaffold every new tool is copied from (developer).

Building your own tool

Everything above ships with Dédalo. To build a new one, start from the developer guide: Creating new tools.