2026-10-27 –, Naturalis 02
Have you lost sleep wondering if your CrossRef XML will validate successfully? You're not alone. The complexity of the CrossRef schema creates a real technical barrier—small publishers, repositories, and other infrastructure developers may delay or abandon DOI registration because the XML can feel fragile to get right. Worse, once it works, it is left alone until it breaks.
In this session you'll discover how a hand-curated Rust library starts to address this barrier, so you can focus on research content instead of schema quirks. You'll see live examples from ResearchEquals, where this tool powers confident DOI registration daily.
After this session you will:
- Understand why auto-generating XML from XSD schemas often fails
- Know how to integrate validation-first tooling into your workflow
Whether you're a developer, repository manager, or PID enthusiast, you'll leave with practical insights you can apply immediately.
Generating DOI metadata shouldn't feel like decoding an ancient manuscript—but the CrossRef schema's complexity makes it easy to second-guess every field.
Small publishers, institutional repositories, and other infrastructure developers face this technical barrier on the regular Some may delay or abandon DOI registration because the XML validation process feels too technical. This isn't just frustrating—it limits who can participate in the PID ecosystem. Worse, once a system is implemented, it is easily labeled DO NOT TOUCH and only revisited when it breaks. This limits the potential of registering worthwhile metadata. I've been there
In this 30-minute session you'll discover how crossref-xml, a hand-curated Rust library, removes the guesswork from Crossref DOI registration. Built on lessons from ResearchEquals, this tool prioritizes validation confidence over auto-generated convenience. You'll see real examples of how it catches errors before submission and integrates into existing workflows.
After this session you will:
Understand why auto-generating XML from XSD schemas often fails in practice, and what a hand-curated approach solves
Know how to integrate a validation-first library into your workflow to catch errors before submission
You'll also learn:
The design decisions behind
crossref-xmlHow this approach lowers barriers for small publishers and repositories new to DOIs
Where to find the tool and how to contribute to its development
Whether you're a developer building DOI workflows, a repository manager tired of rejected submissions, or a PID enthusiast curious about sustainable open source infrastructure, you'll leave with practical insights you can apply immediately.
This session fits the "Address Challenges" track by confronting a real technical barrier to PID adoption. You don't need to become a CrossRef schema expert—smart tooling can handle the complexity for you.
