5. Setting standards
Matching standards to the project
Two main impetus…es for digitisation
• Preservation
– OHIO (only handle it once)
– colour management, ‘master’ copies
• Access
– search/ discoverability
– crowdsourcing
6. Setting standards
Factors
• How much material to copy?
• What condition? (preservation needs assesment)
• How much time/ money do you have?
• Has somebody already digitised it? (books…)
• What is its significance? (significance statement, etc.)
9. Setting standards
Resolution
1 inch 1 inch
@300dpi
= 90,000 pixels
@72dpi
= 5,184 pixels
1 inch 1 inch
‘Screen’ resolution Standard ‘Print’ resolution
11. Setting standards
The short version
National Library of Australia
http://www.nla.gov.au/standards/image-capture
Public Record Office Victoria
http://prov.vic.gov.au/government/standards-and-policy/capture
15. Resources needed
Physical resources
• Space
– managed, secure (fire, flood, pests, ancient wiring, not about
to be reclaimed by Council for boutique carparks, etc.)
– flat (shelving, tables)
• Supplies
– rehousing materials for copied originals
– acid free paper, plastic film, gloves, pencils, spirit level,
measuring tape/ rulers, gaffer tape, extension cables, USB
sticks, random things that aren’t too grubby
17. Resources needed
Human resources
• Project manager
• Project committee
(for when the manager heads off to Noosa)
• Tame experts
• Volunteers
– what do you need from them?
– what do they get out of it?
18. Resources needed
Documentation
• Digitisation policy/ strategy/ plan
• Project statement/ plan
• Risk management framework
• Specific policies/ procedures
• Written agreements with donors and
digitisers
• Passwords. Write them down.
19. Resources needed
Permission
• From your group
• From your stakeholders
• From your donors/ owners of the material
• From your funders
(ok, you need money as well – not this talk)
21. Care of your originals
Collection management
• Are the items catalogued? (Does the catalogue make sense?)
• Are they securely stored?
• Do you know who owns what?
… things go missing.
22. Care of your originals
Preservation management
• put it in a box (controls light, humidity, physical safety)
• wrapped in plastic (anything except PVC)
• write on the enclosure, not the object
• only take it out when you have to
… things get old.
23. Care of your originals
Relationship management
• have some handling rules (gloves, induction)
• digitisation providers should be able to
describe their security and preservation
measures
• don’t break the original to digitise it
… things get dropped.
24. Care of your originals
Further further reading
National Standards for Museums and Galleries
• http://www.collectionsaustralia.net/sector_info_item/107
Keeping Archives
26. Care of your copies
Hardware failure
• backups, offsite preferably
• understand the limits of the storage
technology
• checksums – or just look at your images every
so often
27. Care of your copies
Hardware obsolescence
• migration, vary your storage options
• active management of collection
28. Care of your copies
Software obsolescence
• open formats
(image formats have been stable for decades)
• open applications
(separate the data from the program)
• plan for and budget migrations
29. Care of your copies
Poor management and documentation
• Bill is your IT guy. He has
just fallen under a bus.
• Try not to implement
systems you don’t
understand.
30. Digital Preservation
Hardware failure
• backups, offsite preferably
• understand the limits of the storage
technology
• checksums – or just look at your images every
so often
31. Metadata
Summary
• All of your data needs to be easily extractable from
the software it’s in.
• Create a simple file structure and make sure people
stick to it.
• Manage your backups properly (no lending to
people, manage your risks, NO shortcuts).
34. Getting images online
Originals and renditions
Constraints on delivering raw images
• Connection speed and bandwidth
• Screen size and resolution
• Control over rights to the image
35. Getting images online
Options for publishing
• Don’t…
• Use existing commercial tools and services (Flickr,
Facebook, eHive)
• Use existing community services (Victorian
Collections)
• Your own site (Wordpress, Omeka)
36. Getting images online
What and why to put online
• Marketing your organisation (‘going viral’)
• Online archive (TROVE)
• Storytelling
• Online communities
38. Metadata
Definition
• Data about data (and data systems)
• Look at the data surrounding an image
in Flickr: http://www.flickr.com/
• Explore the Powerhouse Museum:
• http://www.powerhousemuseum.com/
• Metadata reading:
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metadata
39. Metadata
• Think about how your existing data can be:
• Categorised into different functions
(descriptive, discovery, preservation, etc.)
• Standardised (eg. Dublin Core) enabling
matches with other collections and websites.
40. Metadata
• Important things to record:
– Identity (title, ‘control symbol’)
– Classification (subject, function)
– History (dates, purposes)
– [Description]
41. Metadata
Identity
• Some items may not have titles. What is the thing
that distinguishes one item from the next in a
collection?
• Remember physical cues not same as digital.
Perhaps the filename of your image is the title?
• ‘Control Symbol’: Catalogue / collection / record-keeping
number.
42. Metadata
Classification
• Information to manage items and help
narrow down searches.
• Library: ‘subject’ – what is it about?
• Archive: ‘function’ – what does it do?
• Internet: ‘tagging’ – where did I put it again?
• Subject/ topic list for images:
http://www.picturethesaurus.gov.au/
43. Metadata
History
• Archive/ Museum: ‘provenance’ – where is it
from? (which collection, which donor)
• Management history: what has happened to
it? ie., what date was it scanned?
• Scanning is another layer to existing
management history that might be recorded
in your collection database.
44. Metadata
Description
• Extended stories about item (mum on a bike)
• Description of physical original – dimensions,
special features
• Description of digital copy – dpi, file format
45. Metadata
Description
• Extended stories about item (mum on a bike)
• Description of physical original – dimensions,
special features
• Description of digital copy – dpi, file format
46. Metadata
Description
• Extended stories about item (mum on a bike)
• Description of physical original – dimensions,
special features
• Description of digital copy – dpi, file format
47. Metadata
Description
• Extended stories about item (mum on a bike)
• Description of physical original – dimensions,
special features
• Description of digital copy – dpi, file format