Progress on the Old Gold and Black project continues! Read my guest post on the Special Collections and Archives blog about how to search the collection.
My work this week at ZSR has continued much as last week did. It was somewhat interrupted by my snow day Wednesday, as you can see by my beautiful Tuesday afternoon view from the library's sixth floor (somewhat distorted because of the screen). To continue a theme from last week, much of the past few days, for me, have been focused on time. I have come to appreciate the amount of time it takes to show each individual file the love and care it deserves. Ok, that may be a little bit facetious, but I do think it's important for me to realize the time investment that goes into converting and uploading individual files (in my case, the PDFs for the Old Gold & Black project), because it highlights the virtues of batch processing. It also underscores how investing the time in discovering ways to process batches of files is actually a time-saver in the long run. The internship this semester is coinciding with my Leadership and Management for Information Organizations class. Being in a new working environment has certainly given me the opportunity to reflect on previous experiences and to observe some of the ideas we are learning in class. One of our first required readings is First, Break All The Rules: What the World's Greatest Managers Do Differently. As a rule, I am somewhat skeptical that these types of books can offer any wisdom that would be applicable in the "real world", but I have been pleasantly surprised. The book is based on years of workplace and management studies conducted by Gallup in companies across the United States. One of the themes in the book is (can you tell from the title?) to shy away from conventional management practices, which have a tendency to focus on the weaknesses of an employee's performance which usually cannot be changed. Certainly in my experience, the negatives have usually gotten the most attention (the squeaky wheel syndrome?), with the best intentions for improvement of course. But the book tells managers to instead focus on the positives and match employees' strengths with specific job duties. It is nice to see this in action in the digitization lab at ZSR. As my work with evaluating materials to include in the Secrest Artists Series digital exhibit continues, I look forward to exploring some of the issues related to large-scale digitization and copyright. Look for a post with all my amazing insights next week! Oh, and don't forget to see the progress of the OGB project in the keyword searchability progress chart. This week, I am proud to report, I was able to begin uploading converted files of the Old Gold & Black newspaper to WakeSpace for keyword searchability. I have to say, I am grateful for the progress chart (shown in part to the right), which was what kept me going with manually uploading all of the thumbnails and PDF bitstreams. Looking back at when I started the project, I truly underestimated the amount of time involved in performing much of the process "manually" rather than by batch processing (which hit a few snags in the conversion from TIFF to PDF and is not really possible for replacing the individual bitstreams in WakeSpace). Therefore, the progress chart is not only a great way to create a visualization for users of the collection, but also for myself. I don't think I can overstate the satisfaction of seeing the bars turn to gold as I make my way through the years. Secrest Artists Series progress... So, while much of my work with OGB this week was repetitive, I did move forward with (attempting to) conceptualize the Secrest Artists Series exhibit. Part of that brainstorming process was in reading some resources and materials on the process of creating an exhibit. One such source was Creating Exhibitions, a resource primarily directed at creating physical exhibits in a museum setting, but which gave me some insight into the creative process. One of the primary concerns of Creating Exhibitions is on the evolving focus of exhibits from the subject matter to actually engaging the visitors. "...while the objects and the facts they embody remain important, it is the ideas and emotions raised by them and by the visitors that currently take precedence in the creation of contemporary exhibition." (p 70) Although this may seem like common sense, I think when creating anything for public use, not just a museum or library or online exhibit, it is important to consider the audience. Why create something for "them" that they cannot use or has no meaning to them? The book also stresses that a successful exhibit may appeal to both an expert and a beginner when it comes to subject matter. This was certainly something I faced everyday when writing for a small community newspaper. In fact, one of the other writers on staff used to be fond of saying, "You have to write an article for the reader who knows everything [about a given topic] AND the reader who knows nothing." It will certainly be fun to bring this together with the Secrest exhibit. I'm running a little behind with this week's post after spending Friday and Saturday working on some of my articles for the upcoming edition of North Carolina's Eastern Living magazine. But, on the plus side, that has given me a little more time to reflect on this past week.
I began the process this week of converting the digital copies (TIFFs) of the student newspaper, the Old Gold & Black (or OGB), to PDFs for viewing on the web and performing OCR on the files to make them keyword searchable. We thought we had found the proper way to simultaneously convert the files, perform OCR, and merge all pages from one edition into a single PDF, but, alas, it did not quite work that easily. Anyway, it gave me the opportunity to try my hand at researching the issue and while I wasn't totally satisfied with any of the results I found, I do love trying to solve a problem. Meanwhile, I did streamline part of the process and managed to prepare the 1916-1919 files to be uploaded into WakeSpace and was keeping my fingers crossed that we'd be able to update the beautiful chart created for the OGB keyword searchability project. No, I did not have much to do with the creation of the chart, but I am excited that I get to provide the numbers for the spreadsheet that go into the chart! I can't wait to see some of those bars turn old gold. Again, there was a slight hiccup in uploading the new files, but it was worth it. It led to an unexpected benefit - the discovery that I have the access to upload a thumbnail for each edition of the newspaper. I'm excited about getting to help create these thumbnails that will also eventually be seen as part of the Digital Public Library of America (DPLA), to which Wake Forest University is now contributing. Finally, I began the process of reviewing the Secrest Artist Series collection, for which I will be creating a digital exhibit this semester. I am enjoying looking through the materials and learning more about the series myself. I think the challenge will be in finding a way to create an exhibit that takes these personal interests and translates them into something that others will find interesting. This is something I was tasked with doing on a regular basis as a writer for a community newspaper, so I am very curious to see how this will translate to creating a digital exhibit in a library/archival setting. Check out my introductory post on the Z. Smith Reynolds Special Collections blog!
I got back into the library/archives/special collections swing of things this week with a tour of the archives at UNCG. I braved the cold temperatures Tuesday and had the pleasure of meeting with Erin Lawrimore, the university archivist, for an informal chat and tour of the Spartan archives.
The real meat of the visit was my conversation with Erin. She filled me in on some of the unique collections within the UNCG archives – particularly the women veterans historical collection and the extensive collection of cello sheet music held by the archives. I was also interested to hear about her background as a student and archivist – from an undergraduate English major to her draw to archives and her graduate and professional work. She reflected on the ways in which her own unique experiences have contributed to her work as an archivist – public relations following undergrad, working with the personal collection of Sen. Fred Thompson after grad school, her work with N.C. State University, etc. An English major myself, I like to find the connections and themes in the world at large, and it’s always nice to see others can make the same translations in their personal and professional lives. As a person who is interested in just about everything, an archivist’s ability and desire to master the subjects in which he or she finds themselves submerged – whether it’s Fred Thompson or agricultural practices or Baptist ministers – to me, has its own place within the list of desired qualifications for such a position. We also spoke about the importance of marketing an archival collection. Knowing what’s in the collection and what people want to see is another vital skill. Part of the special collections at UNCG is an extensive record of oral histories, including a recent series of interviews with African American students who were among the first on campus after integration was completed. Certainly with significant Civil Rights anniversaries this year, this was a timely and interesting way to draw people to the work of archives and special collections. I also enjoyed hearing about how the use of the university archives is integrated into various classes in programs across campus. To me, this is a great form of marketing, letting students know HOW resources in the archives can be used and how it relates to them on a personal level. We took a tour of the closed stacks and other areas, another of my favorite parts about an archives. I love the rows and rows of boxes and the potential stories they contain – the odd configurations of shelves and the need to creatively use every square inch of available space only adds to the appeal for me. We moved on to what is now the space for the university’s digital projects. The Textiles, Teachers, and Troops project documents history in Greensboro from 1885-1945 and includes items from UNCG’s collection, among several other college archives and the Greensboro Historical Museum. The undertaking is being led by UNCG with the aid of a grant from the State Library of North Carolina. It was neat to get a “behind the scenes” look and some insight on this project. Visiting on the coldest day of the last 20 years had its own advantages (and disadvantages). Yes, I braved the arctic temperatures to walk across campus to the library but I also got to witness an unexpected dilemma unfolding when I arrived. The windows in the bathroom among the stacks were frozen over – from the inside. Condensation formed perfect icicles at the bottom of the (nearly) floor to ceiling window. This brought on further worry about whether the pipes had actually frozen and what the consequences of running the sink in said bathroom might be. Who could have thought to plan for that in this North Carolina climate? The joys of the unexpected! I did quite a bit of recommended reading Thursday morning in the hopes of giving myself some context for what it is I'm REALLY doing in working with the digitized newspaper files of the Old Gold and Black. A couple of things I noted while reading:
1. An Elevator Pitch for File Naming Conventions by Meghan Frazer I like that part of the reason she wrote this article was to go beyond the "because I said so" rationale. While my file naming system at home is not very consistent, I learned the value of consistency in my life working at a newspaper, where being able to find an archived file meant not having to spend two hours re-writing the same information you've written three years in a row. I never quite thought of the naming itself, though, as being part of that preservation. Frazer says, "...in the interest of preserving access to digital files, we choose file name components that are least likely to cause a problem in any environment." I almost feel compelled to go through my computer and rename all of my personal files, although I'm not sure who in the future will care to access my notes for 50 different high school and college projects. 2. National Digital Newspaper Program (NDNP) Technical Guidelines Quite honestly, reading this at first was a little bit tedious and slightly confusing. But with the context provided by the Draft Guidelines for Newspaper Preservation Readiness and an article from International Preservation News, it started to make sense. Even the little bit of work I've done with the OGB so far has made me realize how critical national and international standards are, not just for digital newspaper preservation, but digitization efforts in general. This was the first time I had heard of the JPEG2000 file format, one of the three standard formats required by the NDNP. Reading the guidelines raises a lot of questions for me, some of which I have done a bit of searching about. I'm curious about how to generate a JPEG2000 file format (is it through a plug-in that's available for programs like Photoshop?) I'm also curious about the difference between OCR text that is embedded in the image file versus being contained in a separate file. What are the pros and cons of each? And what programs are needed to create the separate files? 3. Beyond the Scanned Image: Assessing Scholarly Uses of Digital Collections by Trevor Owens Although this article focused on the access of digital collections perhaps more than preservation (at least from users' perspectives), I think digital preservation is again an underlying theme here. Continued access depends on the ability to preserve those collections. I would definitely be curious to see the specifics of the survey results and how people are using these resources for their research. It could give some broad insight into what collections might be most valuable in digital form and possibly ways to make them more accessible or user-friendly. Well, I unofficially became an official intern in the Special Collections and Archives at Wake Forest University's Z. Smith Reynolds (ZSR) Library this week. I am excited about the experience I'm going to get from this opportunity, but also the level of professionalism with which it will be done. (I'm not just saying that because I know Chelcie is going to be reading this!)
I sat down with my site supervisor, Chelcie, who is the Digital Initiatives Librarian at ZSR, and Tanya, the Director of Special Collections and Archives, to talk about the upcoming semester. Chelcie agreed that per the SAA best practices shared with us by Tanya, that one of the most productive uses of my time as an intern is in completing a project from start to finish with an identifiable product. I am excited to work with the digitized copies of WFU's student newspaper, the Old Gold and Black (OGB), and learning to make the files keyword searchable for patrons. It's a project that holds a special interest for me, given my past work at a newspaper. I'm also looking forward to the prospect of working with BiblioLabs and the opportunity to create a unique exhibit. Part of my "orientation" this week was setting up an RSS feed reader and doing some other reading as well. I'm kind of amazed by the concept of an RSS feed, since I've been unintentionally using my Facebook news feed for this purpose for awhile and never bothered to investigate RSS further. I'm going to have fun with this one! In my Foundations class last week we had our "Technology in the Profession" discussion. We were asked to think about the different technology we have in our individual lives and how we think technology is changing and will change the library/information science profession. It's an interesting reflective exercise for anyone to do - to examine how one uses technology in their personal and professional lives and force themselves to take a conscious look at it. Certainly starting this program and an internship in the field has forced me to do so.
I've never been an early adopter of technology, but I think a lot of that has to do with a lack of money. It's not so much that my family couldn't afford it, as much as that it was not a priority. This has carried over into my adult life. Growing up, a lot of my friends had personal computers and internet in their homes long before we did. We finally got one when I was 13 (in 1999), which I think was behind the curve. However, once we did, I was hooked. I have always loved the internet, the ability it has given me to communicate with my friends, and being able to find the answer to just about anything instantaneously. I have a Toshiba laptop that I occasionally use (I think it's probably 5 or 6 years old and falling apart, it was a hand me down from my parents), a Gateway desktop which is also about 5 years old, a Kindle Fire (given to me as a gift earlier this year), an iPad mini (also given to me as a gift a few months ago), a small "offbrand" mp3 player and my (non-smart) LG Banter phone. My personal life may not make me sound too tech savvy, however, my "professional" life has kept me abreast of a lot of the newer technology - from software programs like InDesign and Photoshop, to maintaining a social networking site for a business, to using Google docs. I don't feel so behind when I look at it from that perspective, or from realizing that a lot of technology is intuitive and builds on your existing knowledge - if you let it. Working at a community newspaper, I saw the good, the bad, and the ugly when it comes to the effects technology can have on a profession. We could rarely provide the access to breaking news like the TV news stations could (who had their own websites, while we did not), and we saw how the community admired their ability to be quick and the ease with which they could access that information. On the other hand, our Facebook page (our only online presence) was quite popular. Although I was never able to put it into practice, I imagined that there had to be some kind of perfect harmonious interaction between our web presence and the physical product. I'm convinced that with some creativity, technical knowledge, and an understanding of the community one serves, technology and the print product can (hopefully) survive together. So this is my first official blog post for my Shelf Life blog/portfolio/professional diary (?). Although this project is starting as a requirement for my Library Studies program at UNCG, I'm looking at it as a useful tool to follow my journey through grad school and hopefully give any interested readers a glimpse as well.
Currently, I am sitting in the digitization lab in Wake Forest University's archives, where I started an internship in October. I'm getting to know the scanning equipment here on a much friendlier basis and am writing this post between scans on the beloved Epson. The project I'm working on today is part of digitizing the university's collection of football game programs and related newspaper clippings. Coming from the world of community newspapers, these projects have a lot of significance for me. Something my publisher liked to stress was that our newspaper was a record of history. Although there were many times when I had to consult archives of my own stories for background information or those of many of the reporters before me, the point was never driven home as well as it has been in my short time here. I even found an article from my old newspaper in some of the work I've been doing! The football programs hold a lot of interest for me as well because they are chock full of advertising. Ads can contain a wealth of information about the cultural context in which they were created - what was important, what people wanted, what people likely spent their money on, what companies wanted people to spend their money on, what attitudes and values were acceptable. I appreciate the glimpse I'm getting into the past. |
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