Another side project during my sabbatical time has been to figure out a way to organize all the various on-line resources I've collected over the years. Thirty years ago, I started something called a "morgue" which is an unfortunate name for a collection of visual material; many folks in other visual disciplines have one (in fact I still assign a digital one when teaching advanced stage makeup). My paper morgue is organized in a filing system by period on the lower drawer and then more conceptual items are grouped together in the top drawer. The file names make sense to me and it is for browsing, not searching. It is also a mess and the photocopies I made of images twenty years are literally falling apart with questionable photo copy quality. In fact, as I think back on the past few years, I simply haven't used it as all the information is out there somewhere, at our fingertips at all times.
I also have an extensive personal library of reference books I've collected over the years. However, as we all use technology more and more, organizing online collections has been a challenge. I had been bookmarking pages, keeping a running a list of links, saving on facebook, etc...but needed a hub. Originally, I had thought I would want to include individual image files, but as I have now developed a system for how I organize research for specific shows that I like, I no longer needed that element....what I needed to develop was my online library, not my online morgue. I started to research online solutions and apps a few years ago, met with a few different librarians, and then our departmental IT support, and everyone kept circling around to creating some kind of database. At UM, we use Filemaker for other database applications and costume tracking, but it still felt a little clunky for what I wanted. Regardless, I knew step one would be to get all this information into one place, on some kind of spreadsheet. When I started organizing links in January I had about 100 entries and hadn't yet developed a consistent terminology for labeling, but was at least creating single line items.
A friend sent me a link to a apply to UM's Library Dash. It was a super easy application, basically describing a problem and could the library please help me solve it in a day. My application was accepted and I had a consultation to best prepare. After that initial meeting, I spent a little time cleaning my chart a bit, adding a few clarifying columns and trying to fine-tune twenty or so of the entries in preparation for the all day "dash."
There were two teams working that day and the library provided provisions and even a small stipend. We spent the morning exploring different platforms- blogging tools, databases, and digital publication tools. For ease of use and visual appeal I landed on AirTable, which is a web-based project management platform that can use CSV (comma separated values) for the initial database. As a Gen X'er and non-digital native, a lot of what I learned that day is probably now integrated into K-12 education, but I got a crash course in data management and loved it! After honing in on AirTable, it was back to my google spreadsheet for a quick refinement so we could test it out.
The first adjustment was using consistent language to describe the Resource Format. I had more than 40 kinds, mostly due to sloppiness (plural or not, and multiple entries with in one cell). I quickly adjusted the whole chart and got that column down to eleven choices (photo right). Then we added more specific columns- Period beginning and end dates, Era, Region, and date of publication. I had been using those terms as tags and keywords, but now as distinct headings, they can be easily filtered. Then I thoroughly "cleaned" ten of the entries to import into AirTable and test it out.
Importing the spreadsheet was very easy and then I worked in the Gridview to "tell" Airtable what kind of information was in each column (URL, a checkbox, a number, etc...). The only feature missing for me is rich text fields so I can hyperlink to the site from the entry title. As is, it's just one more click and truly not a big deal. The Gallery format (at top) is my favorite and you can create boards showing specific filters. For mine, so far, I'm using Museums, Periodicals and Best Bets. If I tag resources with specific shows, then I could create a board for just that show to share with a production team....it kind of looks like pinterest but with a lot more meta-data and more formatting control.
Each entry is a card with as much or as little information as is included and known. You can reorder the card content for any board and make as much or as little information visible as desired. You can import images and use those images at card headers, which I find very helpful for ease of skimming and browsing. As you can see from the card, left, you can track activity or leave comments as related to that piece of data. This will be particularly helpful as I share this with colleagues.
The app also has an intake form web link which can be shared to anyone who has content to add. Currently, this will be a resource for a handful of faculty, but I can see a scenario where it is unlocked for advanced students (after certain gateway courses and contributions). Many of the entries are linked directly to the UM Library system, so this database as a whole will have a limited access.
I am very happy with how it has shaped up and have already learned some small adjustments I'll need to implement moving forward. I'm excited to see how it works as I begin researching my next two shows: La Boheme and The Grapes of Wrath.
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