[MCN-L] Tiny URLs
Dear Nancy, FYI, here's an article on the limitations of free URL shorteners: http://www.businessinsider.com/why-you-shouldnt-rely-on-url-shorteners-2009- 8 Here's a comparison of services, but it doesn't address the longevity of the links: http://royal.pingdom.com/2009/08/18/url-shortener-speed-and-reliability-shoo tout/ The answer may be to create your own service on your own server. Google the phrase: create your own link shortener and you'll find lots of articles. Here's one: http://lifehacker.com/5335216/make-your-own-url-shortening-service Robert __ Robert L. Weiner Consulting 415/643-8955 robert at rlweiner.com www.rlweiner.com Strategic Technology Advisors to Nonprofit and Educational Institutions -Original Message- From: mcn-l-bounces at mcn.edu [mailto:mcn-l-boun...@mcn.edu] On Behalf Of Proctor, Nancy Sent: Tuesday, October 27, 2009 7:19 PM To: mcn-l at mcn.edu Subject: [MCN-L] Tiny URLs Does anyone know or have experience of the life span of compressed URLs from the various services? (tiny, bit.ly, is.gd, etc.) I know what they promise, but... I may need to use them in txt message replies that visitors can get as a sort of bookmark or aide memoire when taking our new cellphone tour. Links to related info for objects in the collection would be useful and space is short, but I don't want to txt out URLs that will expire too quickly. Nor do I know how quickly is too quickly. Some earlier research with 'bookmark' emails in Tate Modern's multimedia tour by Silvia Filippini Fantoni showed that people will keep the info they've emailed themselves for months in their in-boxes. What's the half-life of a txt message? I started a blog thread on the topic on the Museum Mobile wiki: http://wiki.museummobile.info/archives/645 Thanks for any insights you have! Nancy ___ You are currently subscribed to mcn-l, the listserv of the Museum Computer Network (http://www.mcn.edu) To post to this list, send messages to: mcn-l at mcn.edu To unsubscribe or change mcn-l delivery options visit: http://toronto.mediatrope.com/mailman/listinfo/mcn-l The MCN-L archives can be found at: http://toronto.mediatrope.com/pipermail/mcn-l/
[MCN-L] FW: VRA White Paper Advocating for Visual Resources
mailto:vra-white-paper-team at googlegroups.com Apologies for cross-postings. VISUAL RESOURCES ASSOCIATION PUBLISHES WHITE PAPER ADVOCATING FOR VISUAL RESOURCES MANAGEMENT IN EDUCATIONAL AND CULTURAL INSTITUTIONS LOS ANGELES, California -- The Visual Resources Association (VRA), the international organization for image media professionals, has published a White Paper to promote holistic thinking about effectively meeting institutional as well as individual image user needs. In an environment of rapid technological change and in the face of challenging economic conditions, Advocating for Visual Resources Management in Educational and Cultural Institutions identifies six strategic areas for consideration in planning for the future: multiple sources for images; ways of integrating personal and institutional collections; social computing and collaborative projects; the life-cycle continuum of image assets and their description; rights and copyright compliance; and visual literacy. The paper argues that managers of image collections have successfully re-aligned operations to meet digital demands and that new technologies, extended responsibilities, and closer alliances with related services-such as information technology, rights management, and course management-typify the changes in the work of visual resources professionals. This work now involves building institution-wide resources tied into central digital information infrastructures for the management and preservation of content in a variety of media. Image managers are increasingly involved in inter-institutional efforts to share collections and distribute labor-intensive tasks. VRA asserts that eliminating visual resources services carries high risk during this transitional era and does not serve an institution's broader educational mission. Current VRA President Allan Kohl states At a time when more academic disciplines are using images as primary teaching resources, and visual literacy is increasingly understood as being central to learning, it is more important than ever to support the building of shared collections to reduce redundancy, facilitate resource sharing, increase efficiencies, and minimize costs. In fact, many institutions have begun to re-examine the appropriate administrative home of visual resources collections in response to the changes brought about by the increasing demand for digital media in pedagogy. The VRA White Paper concludes by describing several successful administrative scenarios that offer flexible options for building shared image collections and providing support for the constituents of educational and cultural institutions. Advocating for Visual Resources Management in Educational and Cultural Institutions is available online and may be freely distributed: http://www.vraweb.org/resources/general/vra_white_paper.pdf -- Maureen Burns, Ed.D. Images and Education moaburns at gmail.commailto:moaburns at gmail.com or maburns at uci.edumailto:maburns at uci.edu (sent by Rebecca Moss, University of Minnesota)
[MCN-L] Join MCN 2009 Online with Webcasts and More!
Hello everyone, The Museum Computer Network is pleased to announce that five MCN 2009 sessions will be webcast live, free of charge. MCN 2009 takes place week after next in Portland, Oregon. While we urge everyone who is interested to attend the conference in person as the only way to engage with its full array of workshops, sessions, events, exhibitors, and networking opportunities, we know that some are unable to do so because of especially acute funding issues this year. If you can't be with us at the conference, we hope these webcasts may enable you still to benefit from some of its knowledge sharing. If you find this useful, we encourage you to join MCN to help support these efforts for the wider community. The webcasts will be on Thursday and Friday, November 12 and 13. We'll use Twitter to harvest online questions during QA in those sessions, which are: Museum Data Exchange Tweets to Sweeten Collaborations for Archives, Libraries, and Museums Libraries, Archives, and Museums: From Collaboration to Convergence Ramping Up while Scaling Down: Strategic Innovation in Challenging Times 2009 Conference Roundup Roundtable http://www.mcn.edu/mcn2009online has more information. Short URL http://bit.ly/mcn09oL leads to the same page. Please plan to join us online even if you can't join us onsite! Rob Lancefield President, MCN
[MCN-L] Silent auction reminder!
Just a reminder that the annual MCN conference is a mere TWO WEEKS away, so it's time to start gathering up donations for the silent auction! Proceeds from the silent auction benefit our scholarship program, which helps emerging museum professionals attend our conference. Some very lovely gadgets (camera! printer! LCD screens!) have already been committed...what are you bringing? Here are some ideas... * Items of any sort--new or old, seriously useful or cheerfully unrelated to museum work--that may be carried by airline passengers * Exhibition catalogues, institutional publications, museum bags, clothing, and other souvenirs * Intangible things like free services or discounted registration for professional events * Your crafts, i.e., photography, paintings, prints, knitting, embroidery, mosaics or anything else that will fit into a suitcase Remember, all auction donations are tax deductible! Auction items will be accepted at the Conference Registration Desk on all day Wednesday and Thursday until noon. You may place your bids until 5:30 Thursday, when we stop the bidding and announce the winners. Jana Hill MCN 2009 Silent Auction Chair
[MCN-L] JOB POSTING: International Museum of Women -- Web Master / Social Media Expert
International Museum of Women Position: Web Master / Social Media Expert Full time, Exempt. 6 month contract with potential to extend. The International Museum of Women is seeking an energetic, web-savvy multimedia professional with a flair for words and a passion for using social media to inspire social change. About the International Museum of Women: The International Museum of Women (www.imow.org http://www.imow.org ) is an innovative, online, social change museum. Through vibrant online exhibitions we inspire global action, connect people across borders, and transform hearts and minds. Our new exhibition, Economica, looks at women?s experiences of the global economy and kick-starts a conversation about how everything in the economy ? from microfinance to philanthropy to GDP ? might look different if we asked women for answers. Position Summary: The Web Master oversees the International Museum of Women's Web site, media-rich global online exhibitions, online community and forum, online promotions, social media outreach, and traffic analysis. The Web Master is the primary contact for Web site content development, design and technology, and manages editorial and production volunteers. The ideal candidate will be highly creative, a flexible and enthusiastic team-player, supremely organized and passionate about leveraging social media to make a global impact on the lives of women. Reports to: Vice President, Exhibitions and Programs Responsibilities: The Web Master is responsible for the creation, implementation, quality assurance, daily maintenance, and promotion of I.M.O.W.?s Web site, multilingual online exhibitions, and global community including: ? Web site multimedia development and production including preparation of all image, text and multi media assets for uploading into content management system. ? Web site content creation including soliciting and developing feature content such as stories, interviews, art, photography, podcasts, and videos. ? As senior editor, leads Web site writing and editing and provides final review and edit for all content. ? Manages online community tools including community registrations, online submissions, forum conversations, and blogs. ? Develops online promotional strategies to drive traffic to site. ? Accelerates the museum?s effective use of social media including Facebook, Twitter and You Tube. ? Refreshes, re-launches and energizes the IMOW blog. ? Creates and disseminates e-newsletters and other online communications and promotions. ? Provides site-wide traffic analysis and reporting, and implements traffic-building and participation-building strategies. ? Creates day-to-day timelines, manages deliverables, and supervises volunteers and interns. Serves as primary liaison with Web development and design firm, and Web site freelancers, as needed. ? Keeps content fresh, relevant, and aligned with global news agendas. ? Keeps current on Web and social media trends and innovations and makes recommendations on new Web site features and applications. Qualifications: ? A 4-year degree and 5 years work experience in media design, Web site production, or related field is required. ? Excellent writing, editing, and communication skills. ? Deep expertise in social media, including an excellent track record in social media marketing. ? Experience producing popular content for online audiences. ? Strong project management skills with a demonstrated ability to deliver results in a small organization with limited resources. ? Excellent communication, collaborative, and organizational abilities and ability to multi-task. ? Experience managing traffic and analysis of online traffic patterns. Familiarity with best practices for online traffic generation and search engine optimization. ? Technical expertise with content management systems, media editing tools and software, knowledge of Web site design and production. Proficient in Windows Media Player, HTML, Photoshop, Acrobat as well as MS Word, Excel, and PowerPoint. Familiarity with new developments in multimedia technology. ? Cultural awareness and sensitivity. ? Well versed in contemporary international affairs and plugged into the blogosphere and the online news agenda. Experience with or interest in policy issues affecting women globally. ? Multilingual skills are desirable. The International Museum of Women is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. Salary: Competitive and commensurate with experience. Start Date: Immediate To Apply: Email resume, cover letter and a statement about how you would evolve and energize our current online exhibition, Economica, to jobs at imow.org, subject line Web Master and your last name; include salary requirements. No phone calls please. Applications without cover letters and statements will not be considered. A digital portfolio may be requested of applicants.
[MCN-L] DIGITAL FUTURES ACADEMY 2010
DIGITAL FUTURES ACADEMY 2010 We are are pleased to announce the Digital Futures Academy 5 day training event: Digital Futures Academy: Sydney, Australia. 1st - 5th February 2010 Digital Futures Academy: from digitization to delivery, London,UK 19th - 23rd April 2010 Book early as places are limited and early bird discounts are available! http://www.digitalconsultancy.net/digifutures/ Led by international experts, Digital Futures focuses on the creation, delivery and preservation of digital resources from cultural and memory institutions. Lasting 5 days, Digital Futures is aimed at managers and other practitioners from the library, museum, heritage, media and cultural sectors looking to understand the strategic and management issues involved in developing digital resources from digitisation to delivery. Digital Futures will cover the following core areas: o Planning and management o Fund raising o Understanding the audience o Metadata - introduction and implementation o Copyright and intellectual property o Sustainability o Financial issues o Visual and image based resource creation and delivery o Implementing digital resources o Digital preservation Sydney highlights: There will be visits to the State Library, NSW and the Powerhouse Museum to see behind the scenes and receive expert presentations. London highlights: The visits will be tot he National Gallery and The National Archives to see behind the scenes and gain expert advice and presentations. Digital Futures aims for no more than 25-30 delegates and every delegate will have the opportunity to also spend one-to-one time with a Digital Futures leader to discuss issues specific to them. Digital Futures will issue a certificate of achievement to each delegate. The Digital Futures leaders are: * Simon Tanner - Director of King's Digital Consultancy Services, King's College London http://www.kdcs.kcl.ac.uk/ * Tom Clareson - Director for New Initiatives, Lyrasis http://www.lyrasis.org/ The leaders have over 30 years of experience in the digital realm between them. Other experts will be invited to speak in their areas of expertise. What past delegates say about Digital Futures: * Excellent - I would recommend DF to anyone anticipating a digitization program * The team was exceptionally knowledgeable, friendly and personable. * Excellent, informative and enjoyable. Thank you. * A really useful course and great fun too! Digital Futures is run by King's Digital Consultancy Services and the Centre for Computing in the Humanities, King's College London working in co-operation with Lyrasis, USA. Digital Futures Australasia is made possible with the co-operation of the Library of the University of Technology, Sydney. -- Simon Tanner Director, King's Digital Consultancy Services, King's College London, Centre for Computing in the Humanities, 26-29 Drury Lane, London WC2B 5RL Tel: +44 (0)7887 691716 or Admin: +44 (0)20 7848 2861 Email: simon.tanner at kcl.ac.uk http://www.kdcs.kcl.ac.uk/
