Examining Search Functions of EAD Finding Aids Web Sites

ABSTRACT

This article examined the search functions for all individual EAD Web sites listed on the Library of Congress Web site in 2003. In particular, the type of search engine, search modes, options for searching, search results display, search feedback, and other features of the search systems were studied. The data analysis suggests that there have been some improvements for EAD finding aids within Web sites, but also that problems persist. In addition, the functionality of search systems on Web sites varied considerably and the advantages of EAD finding aids for hierarchical searching have not been fully realized. The article also offers observations about cooperative EAD projects, the issue of search queries, and the relationship between Google and EAD Web sites.     

EAD Encoding and Display: A Content Analysis

ABSTRACT

The study investigated implications of variations in EAD-encoded finding aids on the Web. A content analysis methodology was used to examine five different aspects of EAD finding aids: (1) data elements; (2) labeling terminology; (3) navigation; (4) browsing; (5) searching. Seventeen EAD finding aid web sites selected from 161 RLG member institution web sites, were examined. The results of the study showed that variations in EAD finding aids existed. These include inconsistency in the use of data elements, labeling terminology, and browsing attributes. In addition, some of the EAD finding aid web sites did not provide navigational aids within a finding aid or search functions for access to it. Findings suggest that increased navigational aids, as well as more browsing and search functions are needed to provide better access to EAD-encoded finding aids.     

Describing Anything That Walks

ABSTRACT

Anchored on the Vietnamese American Project (VAP), this essay presents the documentation of the Vietnamese American Experience through the voices of ethnic Vietnamese in Orange County, California, home to the largest concentration of this ethnic group outside Vietnam. Groundbreaking in its approach and method, VAP is an open forum that enables community assessment, self education, public memory preservation, and the first step toward understanding Vietnamese America and the Vietnamese diaspora. The cross-sectional narratives encompass transcontinental accounts of first and 1.5 generations of Vietnamese refugees and their children, and subsequently focus on their coming to terms with their second home in America, dwelling on how ethnic Vietnamese have negotiated with political turmoil, socioeconomic changes, and cultural identity. The paper, as the VAP, bridges cultural and linguistic barriers, connecting the native land and the adopted country. In short, the paper through its synthesis of the VAP: (1) gives a timely response to the urgent needs to understand and study the ethnic Vietnamese community in Orange County, providing much-needed primary data on the respective population for the ethnic communities and interdisciplinary scholarship; (2) serves as a healing process for members of the Vietnamese American community in Orange County and other victims of war; (3) sheds light onto intra- and inter-ethnic relations, fostering community consolidation, forging cross-cultural collaborations, and nurturing racial harmony; (4) contributes to an important period in American history with perspectives that are lacking in the extant literature; and (5) will conduce peace by bringing out the human experience in America's longest war.     

The Influence of American and European Practices on the Evolution of EAD

SUMMARY

Widespread adoption of EAD in the United States and in Europe is attributable to a number of factors, including compatibility with ISAD(G), availability of funding for data conversion, requirements of granting agencies, and the desire of archivists to use common standards.     

Online Finding Aids: Are They Practical?

ABSTRACT

This article explores the uses, practicality, and problems involved in creating online finding aids by state-funded university archivists across the nation. It examines various aspects of online finding aids such as financial considerations, its importance as a research tool, timelines, demographics, and use. The more technical side is also explored by inquiring how finding aids are created (e.g., EAD/XML, HTML), whether they have been reformatted before appearing on the web, and what archivists believe are the best methods for their creation. Finally, problems that the participants have encountered along the way are reviewed as well as how archivists dealt with them. The study involved 16 university archivists from state-supported institutions and one from a private university. The research for this article is based on the responses to a 20-question survey that was administered by the author by telephone or e-mail. The research was further supported by an examination of the recent literature that has appeared in archival journals as well as contacting archivists who are working on large online projects. The goal of this article is to assist archivists in identifying potential problems in the development of online finding aids while promoting their presence on the Internet as an important research tool.     

Controlling the Production of EAD Encoded Documents,Extracting Metadata and Publishing Them on the Web: Methods and Tools,France

SUMMARY

This article presents four projects geared towards providing the community of EAD users with methods and tools to control the quality of archival finding aids, to extract metadata from them in Dublin Core and qualified Dublin Core for use in OAI-PMH repositories, and to publish them on the Web along with the digital images produced by digitization of the material described. The first two projects were conducted in 2004 by the Centre Historique des Archives Nationales together with AJLSM and resulted in the writing of reports and programs. The other projects are PLEADE and Navimages, which consist of open source applications that allow the building of Web-based search and viewing applications. All these tools can be used by archivists to create a complete publishing suite.     

Encoded Archival Description: Are Finding Aids Boundary Spanners or Barriers for Users?

ABSTRACT

The article reports the results of a usability study of an EAD interface. Findings indicate that subjects had trouble understanding archival terminology and how best to search for information in finding aids. Furthermore, they were not familiar with the structure or contents of finding aids. In addition to building interfaces that minimize archival jargon and rely heavily on users' prior understanding of hierarchical finding aids, this study indicates that users require new forms of virtual reference assistance in the online environment.     

Giving Structure to Legacy Finding Aids Before Conversion to EAD: The Case of the Archives Départementales des Pyrénées-Atlantiques,France

SUMMARY

At the Archives Départementales des Pyrénées-Atlantiques, the encoding of more than forty legacy finding aids written between 1863 and 2000 is part of a program of digitization of the collections. Because of the size of the project, an external consultant, ArchProteus, has been brought in and specific management procedures have been put in place within the institution. The conversion has allowed the testing and verification of the flexibility of the EAD DTD, despite the various hurdles negotiated throughout the project, such as the necessity of reengineering finding aids, and standardizing index terms, etc. It becomes clear that a conversion project–in this case, a retrospective conversion–will lead the archivist to rethink the production of finding aids and the relationship with users and patrons.