Digitisation Doctor Conference

Starting off a series of 'guest' blog entries, the Archive (or at least half of it) had an away day today, and attended a digitisation information event in London. Being from London myself, it's always great to get to go back, particularly for educational/academic visits. I've had the pleasure in the last year of being able to visit the British Library for an Oral History Workshop, for example.

Kate and I went to the Wellcome Trust at Euston, a building which I have passed many times on my travels around town but never had the privilege to visit before. It was a great venue and I must say I loved the modern style of the architecture, a great juxtaposition to the great St Pancras Hotel - or St Pancras Station if you believe the Harry Potter franchise - a few hundred yards away.


The Wellcome Trust was a great venue

I think it's fair to say that we were treated to an outstanding day, my first proper conference of sorts, having attended a number of workshops with my secondary school. The papers were varied but all highly applicable to the developments at the Archive.

I could easily highlight any of the presentations but I want to mention specifically William Kilbride (follow him on Twitter @WilliamKilbride) from the Digital Preservation Coalition. His 'Preservation Planning in 12 Questions' was particularly brilliant and I can definitely see myself incorporating this into my MA in the coming two years. On a personal note I am thrilled to have been accepted on that course and look forward immensely to continuing my studies here at Corsham Court.

These are some great questions that preservation projects would do well to keep in mind... 

I also particularly enjoyed Christy Henshaw (@Chenshaw) who spoke about workflows in digitisation projects. Her flow diagrams certainly took me back to the project modules I did on my ICT A-Level. Memories! Finally, I wish to mention Simon Tanner (@SimonTanner) and his talk on Optical Character Recognition (OCR). It has certainly led me to appreciate the systems available via Bath Spa University's Electronic Services. I cannot help but feel a lecture on this to undergraduates would help them to appreciate the enormity of the scope of putting such resources online, and why currently they cannot hope to be 100% accurate.

All of the talks had some resonance with our project, though, and elements of them all will no doubt feature on our work as it progresses in the next couple of years. It really is an exciting time for anyone associated with the BSU Archive!

There was also time for discussion with the rest of the group, and we were fortunate enough to be able to chat with some representatives of the Collections Trust, based at the Natural History Museum, South Kensington. They opened our eyes to some fantastic funding opportunities available through the European Commission, particularly the Europeana project. This looks like it could have the makings of a fantastic portal for materials across Europe. I highly recommend it to any fellow students or those interested in European history in general. Who knows what one might find there?

The day was made even better with the use of Twitter, allowing members of the group to communicate with the speakers once they had finished. They were also able to post up their slides before they spoke so that we could follow on our connected devices as well as on the projector. For those interested, you can have a look through the tweets using the hashtag #digidoctor. For someone involved with IT, it was an excellent use of social media to help add to an already excellent event. In my opinion it really showcased the power of social media.

Today has certainly got my creative juices going and I can already think of directions to take the digitisation of the project forward, particularly in relation to OCR systems, funding, planning and development of a cataloging and online digitisation system. I have really enjoyed today and once again look forward to helping the project to develop in the future. I could write so much more but I think I leave more detailed specifics (for now!) to my own private reflective blog for the project. Good things come to those who wait...

There was even some time to stop by one of my favourite watering holes in the area before heading back to Paddington for the train to the West Country. As I write we are being delayed by signalling problems, some things really never change! Had a beautiful sunset to bid me a fond farewell from the capital, so it's not all bad news.

From the train coming out of London

I would once again like to point a friendly finger towards our own Twitter presence, @BSUArchive. Please do give us a follow to keep up with our latest news.

Richard

Digital Archives versus Real Life

In a recent blog I talked about scanning, and how the digitisation of archive materials has changed the world of research. (Take another look! http://bsuarchive.blogspot.co.uk/2013/03/scanning-scanning-and-more-scanning.html) 

There is a good deal of dispute, amongst researchers, historians and in the archive world, about whether online or real access is 'better'. But as with many other areas of life, there are pros and cons to both access routes.

A digitizing challenge: this scrapbook charts the early years of Newton Park Teacher Training college, and was the property of Principal Mary Dawson. All of the items are glued in, and the whole book is rather fragile.

There is more material available to view online with each day that passes. Recent developments have seen the digitisation of Queen Victoria's diaries, as well as Blitz maps of London, made widely available for the first time. As well as offering these resources to a far, far greater number of people, it is also the means to protect the original documents from over-handling.

As a researcher, returning to university as a mature student just four years ago, I was staggered at the sheer number of easily accessible resources available through the university library. Here was a gold mine of information, to be found at my fingertips, via the computer. I read ancient books, opened Georgian newspapers and looked at famous and obscure paintings right down to the smallest brush strokes.

Domestic Science College students, 1916. This photograph is very evocative  of the era, with women students reflecting masculine styles of dress and stance. The image is also stained with dirty fingermarks and battered at the edges

A visit to a 'real archive' and the handling of real documents naturally takes this fascination onto an even more thrilling level, but for me, this initial online access prepared the way, enhancing my interest in primary sources.

I had already fallen under the spell of archive materials via technology when I was given the opportunity for a placement in a real archive. And there, in the search room of the Wiltshire and Swindon History Centre in Chippenham, Wiltshire, I fell under the spell of old documents completely. The feel, and above all the intoxicating smell of them, can transport you to an entirely new level of appreciation of the past. I'll never forget the letter from a First World War soldier and the pressed flowers which fell out as I unfolded it.

The placement with Wiltshire and Swindon History Centre, and everything I learned there, has informed the work we do here at BSU Archive. The ongoing digitisation of our documents will mean access for all those who wish to know more about the history of the university. This in turn will lead to greater research into the many aspects of the past, as yet uncovered. It will also mean that more people could have the opportunity to handle the real documents and, through oral history testimony, to listen to the real people who have experienced life in these places over the years.

Group photograph of Domestic Science students, 1937. This image has been stored, rolled, for many years, and  is difficult to unroll. Another challenge to come...

The first Newton Park students, 1946. Those who have been interviewed from the late 1940s  recall  the simpler pleasures they enjoyed, and a feeling of unity having lived through the deprivation of the war years. 

Want to find out more about the Wiltshire and Swindon History Centre? Website available at  http://wshc.eu/our-services/archives.html