Happy developers, happy museums JISC #dev8d Mia Ridge, Science Museum

Who? I’m Mia I work for the Science Museum Yes, I have an accent (fading after several years away) http://twitter.com/mia_out - @ me with comments. I’ll post URLs there too. http://openobjects.org.uk – my blog on digital heritage, blah blah blah

I’m Mia

I work for the Science Museum

Yes, I have an accent (fading after several years away)

http://twitter.com/mia_out - @ me with comments. I’ll post URLs there too.

http://openobjects.org.uk – my blog on digital heritage, blah blah blah

IMHO I think museums can change lives "Those who do not study history are doomed to repeat it. “ "No sensible decision can be made any longer without taking into account not only the world as it is, but the world as it will be." Isaac Asimov Museums should be about delight, serendipity and answers that provoke more questions Museums should also be committed to accessibility, transparency, curation, respecting and enabling expertise

I think museums can change lives

"Those who do not study history are doomed to repeat it. “

"No sensible decision can be made any longer without taking into account not only the world as it is, but the world as it will be." Isaac Asimov

Museums should be about delight, serendipity and answers that provoke more questions

Museums should also be committed to accessibility, transparency, curation, respecting and enabling expertise

Why am I here today? Museums have lots of information We like sharing it We could guess what’s useful for researchers, educators and developers - but we’d rather go to the source. How we can work with you?

Museums have lots of information

We like sharing it

We could guess what’s useful for researchers, educators and developers - but we’d rather go to the source. How we can work with you?

Some challenges Technical The future is here, it’s just not evenly distributed Data We have a lot of it. A lot of what we have is rubbish Institutional Challenges to curatorial authority, fear of loss of control, loss of trust, fear that we’ll get the IT wrong Funding, metrics How do you propose agile projects to funding committees? How do you measure visitors to a mashup? Copyright We don’t always have image or IP rights for our objects or content

Technical

The future is here, it’s just not evenly distributed

Data

We have a lot of it. A lot of what we have is rubbish

Institutional

Challenges to curatorial authority, fear of loss of control, loss of trust, fear that we’ll get the IT wrong

Funding, metrics

How do you propose agile projects to funding committees? How do you measure visitors to a mashup?

Copyright

We don’t always have image or IP rights for our objects or content

Dealing with the challenges We can’t afford to build interfaces to meet every need. But we don’t need to if we make it possible for others to build things Inspiring examples, real success stories from users, sharing technical solutions help sector evangelisers ‘ Fail faster, succeed sooner’ – reward intelligent failure Suggestions?

We can’t afford to build interfaces to meet every need.

But we don’t need to if we make it possible for others to build things

Inspiring examples, real success stories from users, sharing technical solutions help sector evangelisers

‘ Fail faster, succeed sooner’ – reward intelligent failure

Suggestions?

What are museums known for? Buildings full of stuff Being experts Making visitors come to us Being fun. Yay! 8D Being boring. Boo :(

Buildings full of stuff

Being experts

Making visitors come to us

Being fun. Yay! 8D

Being boring. Boo :(

What are museum websites known for? Helping you plan a visit Most people use museum websites to find out when a museum is open, how much it costs, and what's on. Which is nice... but... we can do more

Helping you plan a visit

Most people use museum websites to find out when a museum is open, how much it costs, and what's on.

Which is nice... but... we can do more

Pretty ‘exhibition microsites’

Collections online (not always as pretty)

(not always as pretty)

What do we have? Lots of objects, lots of images Lots of metadata about objects Also interrelated records on people, places, dates, historical periods, events, subjects (topics, themes) Who designed, invented, made, used, bought, owned, donated an object? When and where was it made, used, found? What’s related?

Lots of objects, lots of images

Lots of metadata about objects

Also interrelated records on people, places, dates, historical periods, events, subjects (topics, themes)

Who designed, invented, made, used, bought, owned, donated an object? When and where was it made, used, found? What’s related?

What are museums doing at the moment? One way or another, we're opening up access to our collections. Read access is easy, write access is harder. APIs large and small Aiming to produce re-usable, interoperable data with clear re-use statements Cool examples: IMA dashboard, Powerhouse Museum OPAC, Brooklyn Museum http://dashboard.imamuseum.org/ , http://www.powerhousemuseum.com/collection/database/menu.php , http://www.brooklynmuseum.org/opencollection/collections/ , http://objectwiki.sciencemuseum.org.uk/

One way or another, we're opening up access to our collections.

Read access is easy, write access is harder.

APIs large and small

Aiming to produce re-usable, interoperable data with clear re-use statements

Cool examples: IMA dashboard, Powerhouse Museum OPAC, Brooklyn Museum

http://dashboard.imamuseum.org/ , http://www.powerhousemuseum.com/collection/database/menu.php , http://www.brooklynmuseum.org/opencollection/collections/ , http://objectwiki.sciencemuseum.org.uk/

We’re taking our content to where people hang out

What would we like to be known for? An end to silos User-centred, not institution-centred Helping researchers help themselves Helping developers help others Being a source of content for lecturers and teachers Not just history, biography or art – also science, natural history, archaeology

An end to silos

User-centred, not institution-centred

Helping researchers help themselves

Helping developers help others

Being a source of content for lecturers and teachers

Not just history, biography or art – also science, natural history, archaeology

What can we do for you? Who are you? University users (students, researchers, teachers and administrators), hobbyists, specialists, developers; direct or indirect uses Enquiry-based learning; mashups; linked data, semantic web technologies, cross-collections searches; faceted browsing to make complex searches easy; museums as a place where stuff lives – a happy home for metadata mapped around objects and authority records? What else? You tell me! What do you want to provide for your users, and how can museums help?

Who are you? University users (students, researchers, teachers and administrators), hobbyists, specialists, developers; direct or indirect uses

Enquiry-based learning; mashups; linked data, semantic web technologies, cross-collections searches; faceted browsing to make complex searches easy; museums as a place where stuff lives – a happy home for metadata mapped around objects and authority records?

What else? You tell me! What do you want to provide for your users, and how can museums help?

Happy developers + happy museums = happy punters “ The coolest thing to do with your data will be thought of by someone else” [http://www.ukoln.ac.uk/repositories/digirep/index/CRIG]

“ The coolest thing to do with your data will be thought of by someone else”

[http://www.ukoln.ac.uk/repositories/digirep/index/CRIG]

Image credits http://flickr.com/photos/ncindc/2746241750/ Museum building http://flickr.com/photos/phploveme/2679669420/ Instrument case http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:LondonScienceMuseumsReplicaDifferenceEngine.jpg Replica Difference Engine http://flickr.com/photos/wonderlane/3083455553/ Happy face http://flickr.com/photos/dsevilla/129592677/ Curiosity http://flickr.com/photos/criminalintent/537762948/ Crowd control barriers http://flickr.com/photos/zoomzoom/304135268/ Silos If not in the list, http://flickr.com/photos/_mia/

http://flickr.com/photos/ncindc/2746241750/ Museum building

http://flickr.com/photos/phploveme/2679669420/ Instrument case

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:LondonScienceMuseumsReplicaDifferenceEngine.jpg Replica Difference Engine

http://flickr.com/photos/wonderlane/3083455553/ Happy face

http://flickr.com/photos/dsevilla/129592677/ Curiosity

http://flickr.com/photos/criminalintent/537762948/ Crowd control barriers

http://flickr.com/photos/zoomzoom/304135268/ Silos

If not in the list, http://flickr.com/photos/_mia/