[MCN-L] File naming conventions for digitized archives
Thanks for the replies; all are helpful. To clarify, Chuck, we don't use filenames as catalog numbers, but the image filenames are based on the catalog numbers of the original items. Cataloging comes first, and filenames are assigned by the image management system in our PastPerfect software. It's an imperfect system, and I'm aware that Digital Asset Management (including images that do not represent collection items) would be helpful, but we just aren't there yet. You can see a handful of test records representing archival collections and individual items within them here (if the link works): http://statenisland.pastperfect-online.com/00039cgi/mweb.exe?request=advance d;_tkeyword=;_t1101=;_t1102=;_t1103=;_t1104=;_t1105=;_t1106=;_t1107=;_t1108= ;_t1109=;_t1110=;_t=real%20estate;_t1112=;_%3E1091=;_%3C1092=;dtype=d;su bset=300 If the link doesn't work, you can go to the search page at http://statenisland.pastperfect-online.com/00039cgi/mweb.exe?request=advform and search for Collection Name = Real Estate Collection. As you'll see, there is a record for the Real Estate Collection as a whole, records for each of the three series within that collection, and records for individual items. Catalog numbers such as MS234.001.ITEM.0001 represent Manuscript Collection Number, Series Number, and item number. The series numbers correspond to the arranged order of the original materials, but the item numbers represent the order in which items within a series were cataloged, not their physical order. (Basically, individual items are cataloged on demand only if there is an image or loan request.) We aren't sure if this numbering system has real advantages over the types of numbers we assign to objects (such as X13.0001). Objects have accession numbers and individual bi-part or tri-part catalog numbers. They do not have collection numbers. It's complicated. So many questions, so little time!!! Thanks to anyone to took the time to read this. Further comments are most welcome. Sarah Sarah Clark Curator Staten Island Historical Society Staten Island, NY 718-351-1611, ext. 272 www.historicrichmondtown.org Explore our collections at: http://historicrichmondtown.org/collections -Original Message- From: Frank E. Thomson [mailto:fthom...@ashevilleart.org] Sent: Thursday, March 21, 2013 1:16 PM To: sclark at historicrichmondtown.org; Museum Computer Network Listserv Subject: RE: [MCN-L] File naming conventions for digitized archives Interesting question. If one follows archivists' standards where the relation of the object to the overall collection is very important. The box and file would be regarded as constant and name could follow this format. Museum standards would have a unique number, maybe year, accession, object in accession and location could be subject to change over time. Frank Thomson Asheville Art Museum Mailing address: PO Box 1717, Asheville, NC 28802 Street address: 2 South Pack Square, Asheville, NC 28801 828.253.3227 t 828.257.4503 f fthomson at ashevilleart.org www.ashevilleart.org Our Vision: to transform lives through art -Original Message- An important thing to keep in mind in any digitization effort is that however convenient it is to incorporate an object ID into the filename, the filename is the ID for the FILE, not the object. You can name your files anything you want, just as long as the system is consistent. Incorporating an accession number or item ID or box number into the filename is fine, but the filename should not be slavishly dependent on its relationship to the object-specific identification information. The problem you describe here is a cataloging issue, not a file naming problem, and it strikes me that attempting to use the object location ID's is going to get you into trouble. Hopefully these items have an accession number, which you might incorporate into the filename for the sake of convenience, but these accession numbers undoubtedly refer to multiple items. In that case you can individually point number the image files with the understanding that these are FILE names and not the item level ID's for the objects in the images. Whatever you do, you should include Object ID information, such as it is in the file's metadata and not be dependent on the filename, which someone is going to change at some point on some derivative in any case. The linkage of the file to the catalog record is another issue and, in your case, a dynamic one. Having a modest DAMS to keep track of the images and, especially, their metadata, would probably be very helpful here. Cheers, Chuck -Original Message- From: mcn-l-bounces at mcn.edu [mailto:mcn-l-boun...@mcn.edu] On Behalf Of Sarah Clark Sent: Thursday, March 21, 2013 8:48 AM To: mcn-l at mcn.edu Subject: Re: [MCN-L] File naming conventions for digitized archives What if you aren't confident that the box and folder locations will rema
[MCN-L] File naming conventions for digitized archives
Interesting question. If one follows archivists' standards where the relation of the object to the overall collection is very important. The box and file would be regarded as constant and name could follow this format. Museum standards would have a unique number, maybe year, accession, object in accession and location could be subject to change over time. Frank Thomson Asheville Art Museum Mailing address: PO Box 1717, Asheville, NC 28802 Street address: 2 South Pack Square, Asheville, NC 28801 828.253.3227 t 828.257.4503 f fthomson at ashevilleart.org www.ashevilleart.org Our Vision: to transform lives through art -Original Message- From: mcn-l-bounces at mcn.edu [mailto:mcn-l-boun...@mcn.edu] On Behalf Of Sarah Clark Sent: Thursday, March 21, 2013 8:48 AM To: mcn-l at mcn.edu Subject: Re: [MCN-L] File naming conventions for digitized archives What if you aren't confident that the box and folder locations will remain constant? We've been trying to make sure that digitized items are processed to the item level, but have struggled with how to assign catalog numbers for specific items within a larger collection (not all the items will be digitized; only those where an image has been requested). And often there is a pressing need to digitize something that's in a collection which has not yet been properly arranged or described, so any box/folder numbers that exist are probably temporary. I'm very interested in this topic and would appreciate any other suggestions or caveats. Our images are managed through our PastPerfect collections management system. Thanks, Sarah Sarah Clark Curator Staten Island Historical Society Staten Island, NY 718-351-1611, ext. 272 www.historicrichmondtown.org Explore our collections at: http://historicrichmondtown.org/collections -- Message: 4 Date: Wed, 20 Mar 2013 16:04:59 -0500 From: lauren boegen To: mcn-l at mcn.edu Subject: [MCN-L] File naming conventions for digitized archives Message-ID: Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Hi everyone, I'm wondering if anyone would be able and willing to share their experiences with file naming when digitizing an archive. We are struggling to find an efficient yet informative/functional way to assign file names to items in the collection that aren't individually identified at the item level. For example, we have several letters from John Doe to Jane Doe grouped in a folder and IDed as such in the finding aid, but we don't identify each individual letter by an accession number. The archive in question contains the business and family papers of an American astronomer and telescope maker and include mostly letters, invoices, and business materials related to telescope delivery. The best we've been able to come up with is a file name combining some sort of descriptor about what the image actually is (ie. letter_fromjohndoe_tojanedoe) and location (Clark_Series1_Box6_Folder2), but this seems unwieldy. I know someone out there's got to have figured out a better way, and any insight would be appreciated. Thanks! Lauren - Lauren Boegen Digital Collections Manager Webster Institute for the History of Astronomy The Adler Planetarium and Astronomy Museum phone: 312.542.2618 lboegen at adlerplanetarium.org -- Message: 5 Date: Wed, 20 Mar 2013 22:19:54 + From: Cathy Herr To: 'Museum Computer Network Listserv' Subject: Re: [MCN-L] File naming conventions for digitized archives Message-ID: <1ACEB49A3941B84EB553C01A63A64C7704E38E at EXCELSIOR.glenbow.org> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Posted on behalf of one of our Archivists ... When we plan to digitize unnumbered items in an archival file, we first number the entire contents of the file. We then add the item number to the end of the call number which we use for identification purposes. For example, in the call number M-1234-5-6, M-1234 represents the manuscript portion of the Smith family fonds; 5 represents the 5th folder in the Smith papers, and 6 represents the 6th page within the 5th folder. Boring perhaps, but the call number will always lead us back to the exact document from which the digital file was made. We do not try to describe the actual item in the file title, as this information can be found in the finding aid. Susan Kooyman Archivist Glenbow Museum 130 - 9 Avenue SE, Calgary, AB. T2G 0P3 P: 403.268.4227 F: 403.262.6569 E: skooyman at glenbow.org -Original Message- From: mcn-l-bounces at mcn.edu [mailto:mcn-l-boun...@mcn.edu] On Behalf Of lauren boegen Sent: March-20-13 3:05 PM To: mcn-l at mcn.edu Subject: [MCN-L] File naming conventions for digitized archives Hi everyone, I'm wondering if anyone would be able and willing to share their experience
[MCN-L] File naming conventions for digitized archives
I found this document helpful: Guidelines on File Naming Conventions for Digital Collections http://ucblibraries.colorado.edu/systems/digitalinitiatives/docs/filenameguidelines.pdf We use the following scheme for digitizing correspondence from collections that cannot be identified by accession # or box/folder #: Correspondent_IN_MMDDa.pdf (where "IN" represents initials for the internal recipient and "a" is indicating page 1 of multi-page letter) Example- Century_Association_DP_19220503.pdf Correspondent__IN_undated01a.pdf (where "01" is the first in a series of undated items and "a" indicates page 1 of a multi-page letter) Example- Carey_E_EB_undated01a.pdf -Sarah Sarah Osborne Bender | Technical Services Librarian and Collections Metadata Specialist t 202-387-2151 x329 | f 202-387-2436 www.phillipscollection.org | Experience the Phillips app (apple/android) and blog today T H E P H I L L I P S C O L L E C T I O N 1600 21st St., NW | Washington, DC | 20009 -Original Message- From: mcn-l-bounces at mcn.edu [mailto:mcn-l-boun...@mcn.edu] On Behalf Of lauren boegen Sent: Wednesday, March 20, 2013 5:05 PM To: mcn-l at mcn.edu Subject: [MCN-L] File naming conventions for digitized archives Hi everyone, I'm wondering if anyone would be able and willing to share their experiences with file naming when digitizing an archive. We are struggling to find an efficient yet informative/functional way to assign file names to items in the collection that aren't individually identified at the item level. For example, we have several letters from John Doe to Jane Doe grouped in a folder and IDed as such in the finding aid, but we don't identify each individual letter by an accession number. The archive in question contains the business and family papers of an American astronomer and telescope maker and include mostly letters, invoices, and business materials related to telescope delivery. The best we've been able to come up with is a file name combining some sort of descriptor about what the image actually is (ie. letter_fromjohndoe_tojanedoe) and location (Clark_Series1_Box6_Folder2), but this seems unwieldy. I know someone out there's got to have figured out a better way, and any insight would be appreciated. Thanks! Lauren - Lauren Boegen Digital Collections Manager Webster Institute for the History of Astronomy The Adler Planetarium and Astronomy Museum phone: 312.542.2618 lboegen at adlerplanetarium.org
[MCN-L] File naming conventions for digitized archives
An important thing to keep in mind in any digitization effort is that however convenient it is to incorporate an object ID into the filename, the filename is the ID for the FILE, not the object. You can name your files anything you want, just as long as the system is consistent. Incorporating an accession number or item ID or box number into the filename is fine, but the filename should not be slavishly dependent on its relationship to the object-specific identification information. The problem you describe here is a cataloging issue, not a file naming problem, and it strikes me that attempting to use the object location ID's is going to get you into trouble. Hopefully these items have an accession number, which you might incorporate into the filename for the sake of convenience, but these accession numbers undoubtedly refer to multiple items. In that case you can individually point number the image files with the understanding that these are FILE names and not the item level ID's for the objects in the images. Whatever you do, you should include Object ID information, such as it is in the file's metadata and not be dependent on the filename, which someone is going to change at some point on some derivative in any case. The linkage of the file to the catalog record is another issue and, in your case, a dynamic one. Having a modest DAMS to keep track of the images and, especially, their metadata, would probably be very helpful here. Cheers, Chuck On Thu, Mar 21, 2013 at 8:48 AM, Sarah Clark < sclark at historicrichmondtown.org> wrote: > What if you aren't confident that the box and folder locations will remain > constant? We've been trying to make sure that digitized items are > processed > to the item level, but have struggled with how to assign catalog numbers > for > specific items within a larger collection (not all the items will be > digitized; only those where an image has been requested). And often there > is a pressing need to digitize something that's in a collection which has > not yet been properly arranged or described, so any box/folder numbers that > exist are probably temporary. > I'm very interested in this topic and would appreciate any other > suggestions > or caveats. Our images are managed through our PastPerfect collections > management system. > > Thanks, > Sarah > > Sarah Clark > Curator > Staten Island Historical Society > Staten Island, NY > 718-351-1611, ext. 272 > www.historicrichmondtown.org > > Explore our collections at: http://historicrichmondtown.org/collections > > > ---------- > > Message: 4 > Date: Wed, 20 Mar 2013 16:04:59 -0500 > From: lauren boegen > To: mcn-l at mcn.edu > Subject: [MCN-L] File naming conventions for digitized archives > Message-ID: > < > CABO5MUYtyERdGL86c19dmSpatqgLGY2JoGw31st6ZmTWVm01pw at mail.gmail.com> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" > > Hi everyone, > > I'm wondering if anyone would be able and willing to share their > experiences with file naming when digitizing an archive. We are struggling > to find an efficient yet informative/functional way to assign file names to > items in the collection that aren't individually identified at the item > level. For example, we have several letters from John Doe to Jane Doe > grouped in a folder and IDed as such in the finding aid, but we don't > identify each individual letter by an accession number. > > The archive in question contains the business and family papers of an > American astronomer and telescope maker and include mostly letters, > invoices, and business materials related to telescope delivery. The best > we've been able to come up with is a file name combining some sort of > descriptor about what the image actually is (ie. > letter_fromjohndoe_tojanedoe) and location (Clark_Series1_Box6_Folder2), > but this seems unwieldy. I know someone out there's got to have figured out > a better way, and any insight would be appreciated. Thanks! > > Lauren > > - > Lauren Boegen > Digital Collections Manager > Webster Institute for the History of Astronomy > The Adler Planetarium and Astronomy Museum > phone: 312.542.2618 > lboegen at adlerplanetarium.org > > -- > > Message: 5 > Date: Wed, 20 Mar 2013 22:19:54 + > From: Cathy Herr > To: 'Museum Computer Network Listserv' > Subject: Re: [MCN-L] File naming conventions for digitized archives > Message-ID: > <1ACEB49A3941B84EB553C01A63A64C7704E38E at EXCELSIOR.glenbow.org> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" > > Posted on behalf of one of ou
[MCN-L] File naming conventions for digitized archives
What if you aren't confident that the box and folder locations will remain constant? We've been trying to make sure that digitized items are processed to the item level, but have struggled with how to assign catalog numbers for specific items within a larger collection (not all the items will be digitized; only those where an image has been requested). And often there is a pressing need to digitize something that's in a collection which has not yet been properly arranged or described, so any box/folder numbers that exist are probably temporary. I'm very interested in this topic and would appreciate any other suggestions or caveats. Our images are managed through our PastPerfect collections management system. Thanks, Sarah Sarah Clark Curator Staten Island Historical Society Staten Island, NY 718-351-1611, ext. 272 www.historicrichmondtown.org Explore our collections at: http://historicrichmondtown.org/collections -- Message: 4 Date: Wed, 20 Mar 2013 16:04:59 -0500 From: lauren boegen To: mcn-l at mcn.edu Subject: [MCN-L] File naming conventions for digitized archives Message-ID: Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Hi everyone, I'm wondering if anyone would be able and willing to share their experiences with file naming when digitizing an archive. We are struggling to find an efficient yet informative/functional way to assign file names to items in the collection that aren't individually identified at the item level. For example, we have several letters from John Doe to Jane Doe grouped in a folder and IDed as such in the finding aid, but we don't identify each individual letter by an accession number. The archive in question contains the business and family papers of an American astronomer and telescope maker and include mostly letters, invoices, and business materials related to telescope delivery. The best we've been able to come up with is a file name combining some sort of descriptor about what the image actually is (ie. letter_fromjohndoe_tojanedoe) and location (Clark_Series1_Box6_Folder2), but this seems unwieldy. I know someone out there's got to have figured out a better way, and any insight would be appreciated. Thanks! Lauren - Lauren Boegen Digital Collections Manager Webster Institute for the History of Astronomy The Adler Planetarium and Astronomy Museum phone: 312.542.2618 lboegen at adlerplanetarium.org -- Message: 5 Date: Wed, 20 Mar 2013 22:19:54 + From: Cathy Herr To: 'Museum Computer Network Listserv' Subject: Re: [MCN-L] File naming conventions for digitized archives Message-ID: <1ACEB49A3941B84EB553C01A63A64C7704E38E at EXCELSIOR.glenbow.org> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Posted on behalf of one of our Archivists ... When we plan to digitize unnumbered items in an archival file, we first number the entire contents of the file. We then add the item number to the end of the call number which we use for identification purposes. For example, in the call number M-1234-5-6, M-1234 represents the manuscript portion of the Smith family fonds; 5 represents the 5th folder in the Smith papers, and 6 represents the 6th page within the 5th folder. Boring perhaps, but the call number will always lead us back to the exact document from which the digital file was made. We do not try to describe the actual item in the file title, as this information can be found in the finding aid. Susan Kooyman Archivist Glenbow Museum 130 - 9 Avenue SE, Calgary, AB. T2G 0P3 P: 403.268.4227 F: 403.262.6569 E: skooyman at glenbow.org -Original Message- From: mcn-l-bounces at mcn.edu [mailto:mcn-l-boun...@mcn.edu] On Behalf Of lauren boegen Sent: March-20-13 3:05 PM To: mcn-l at mcn.edu Subject: [MCN-L] File naming conventions for digitized archives Hi everyone, I'm wondering if anyone would be able and willing to share their experiences with file naming when digitizing an archive. We are struggling to find an efficient yet informative/functional way to assign file names to items in the collection that aren't individually identified at the item level. For example, we have several letters from John Doe to Jane Doe grouped in a folder and IDed as such in the finding aid, but we don't identify each individual letter by an accession number. The archive in question contains the business and family papers of an American astronomer and telescope maker and include mostly letters, invoices, and business materials related to telescope delivery. The best we've been able to come up with is a file name combining some sort of descriptor about what the image actually is (ie. letter_fromjohndoe_tojanedoe) and location (Clark_Series1_Box6_Folder2), but this seems unwieldy. I know someone ou
[MCN-L] File naming conventions for digitized archives
Hi, When I worked at the American Antiquarian Society, I used a convention like this: BibID-Box#-Folder#_sequential#.tif .. if there aren't any boxes, go straight to folder. 101234-b03-f33_0035.tif When creating a naming convention, you obviously need to take into account everything that is and could be. For instance how many total boxes for a family papers could exist? I tend to think 99 would do it, but maybe this isn't that case. LOC may have more. Jonathan On Mar 20, 2013, at 6:19 PM, Cathy Herr wrote: > Posted on behalf of one of our Archivists ... > > When we plan to digitize unnumbered items in an archival file, we first > number the entire contents of the file. We then add the item number to the > end of the call number which we use for identification purposes. For example, > in the call number M-1234-5-6, M-1234 represents the manuscript portion of > the Smith family fonds; 5 represents the 5th folder in the Smith papers, and > 6 represents the 6th page within the 5th folder. Boring perhaps, but the call > number will always lead us back to the exact document from which the digital > file was made. > > We do not try to describe the actual item in the file title, as this > information can be found in the finding aid. > > Susan Kooyman > Archivist > Glenbow Museum > > 130 - 9 Avenue SE, Calgary, AB. T2G 0P3 > P: 403.268.4227 > F: 403.262.6569 > E: skooyman at glenbow.org > > -Original Message- > From: mcn-l-bounces at mcn.edu [mailto:mcn-l-bounces at mcn.edu] On Behalf Of > lauren boegen > Sent: March-20-13 3:05 PM > To: mcn-l at mcn.edu > Subject: [MCN-L] File naming conventions for digitized archives > > Hi everyone, > > I'm wondering if anyone would be able and willing to share their experiences > with file naming when digitizing an archive. We are struggling to find an > efficient yet informative/functional way to assign file names to items in the > collection that aren't individually identified at the item level. For > example, we have several letters from John Doe to Jane Doe grouped in a > folder and IDed as such in the finding aid, but we don't identify each > individual letter by an accession number. > > The archive in question contains the business and family papers of an > American astronomer and telescope maker and include mostly letters, invoices, > and business materials related to telescope delivery. The best we've been > able to come up with is a file name combining some sort of descriptor about > what the image actually is (ie. > letter_fromjohndoe_tojanedoe) and location (Clark_Series1_Box6_Folder2), but > this seems unwieldy. I know someone out there's got to have figured out a > better way, and any insight would be appreciated. Thanks! > > Lauren > > - > Lauren Boegen > Digital Collections Manager > Webster Institute for the History of Astronomy The Adler Planetarium and > Astronomy Museum > phone: 312.542.2618 > lboegen at adlerplanetarium.org > ___ > 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://mcn.edu/mailman/listinfo/mcn-l > > The MCN-L archives can be found at: > http://toronto.mediatrope.com/pipermail/mcn-l/ >
[MCN-L] File naming conventions for digitized archives
Posted on behalf of one of our Archivists ... When we plan to digitize unnumbered items in an archival file, we first number the entire contents of the file. We then add the item number to the end of the call number which we use for identification purposes. For example, in the call number M-1234-5-6, M-1234 represents the manuscript portion of the Smith family fonds; 5 represents the 5th folder in the Smith papers, and 6 represents the 6th page within the 5th folder. Boring perhaps, but the call number will always lead us back to the exact document from which the digital file was made. We do not try to describe the actual item in the file title, as this information can be found in the finding aid. Susan Kooyman Archivist Glenbow Museum 130 - 9 Avenue SE, Calgary, AB. T2G 0P3 P: 403.268.4227 F: 403.262.6569 E: skooyman at glenbow.org -Original Message- From: mcn-l-bounces at mcn.edu [mailto:mcn-l-boun...@mcn.edu] On Behalf Of lauren boegen Sent: March-20-13 3:05 PM To: mcn-l at mcn.edu Subject: [MCN-L] File naming conventions for digitized archives Hi everyone, I'm wondering if anyone would be able and willing to share their experiences with file naming when digitizing an archive. We are struggling to find an efficient yet informative/functional way to assign file names to items in the collection that aren't individually identified at the item level. For example, we have several letters from John Doe to Jane Doe grouped in a folder and IDed as such in the finding aid, but we don't identify each individual letter by an accession number. The archive in question contains the business and family papers of an American astronomer and telescope maker and include mostly letters, invoices, and business materials related to telescope delivery. The best we've been able to come up with is a file name combining some sort of descriptor about what the image actually is (ie. letter_fromjohndoe_tojanedoe) and location (Clark_Series1_Box6_Folder2), but this seems unwieldy. I know someone out there's got to have figured out a better way, and any insight would be appreciated. Thanks! Lauren - Lauren Boegen Digital Collections Manager Webster Institute for the History of Astronomy The Adler Planetarium and Astronomy Museum phone: 312.542.2618 lboegen at adlerplanetarium.org
[MCN-L] File naming conventions for digitized archives
Hi everyone, I'm wondering if anyone would be able and willing to share their experiences with file naming when digitizing an archive. We are struggling to find an efficient yet informative/functional way to assign file names to items in the collection that aren't individually identified at the item level. For example, we have several letters from John Doe to Jane Doe grouped in a folder and IDed as such in the finding aid, but we don't identify each individual letter by an accession number. The archive in question contains the business and family papers of an American astronomer and telescope maker and include mostly letters, invoices, and business materials related to telescope delivery. The best we've been able to come up with is a file name combining some sort of descriptor about what the image actually is (ie. letter_fromjohndoe_tojanedoe) and location (Clark_Series1_Box6_Folder2), but this seems unwieldy. I know someone out there's got to have figured out a better way, and any insight would be appreciated. Thanks! Lauren - Lauren Boegen Digital Collections Manager Webster Institute for the History of Astronomy The Adler Planetarium and Astronomy Museum phone: 312.542.2618 lboegen at adlerplanetarium.org
