INF 385T – Advanced Digitization
Spring 2007
Research Project Guidelines
Project goal:
The principal goal of the research project is to produce high-quality, faithful digital
surrogates for the collection materials you have selected to digitize. To achieve this goal,
you will need to determine the best way to capture the materials, considering both image
quality and materials handling. The final product for your project will be a website
containing the images, your background research, and other related collection-oriented
information.
Initial steps:
1. You will perform background research on digitization projects involving like
materials. How have institutions dealt with digitizing the collection
materials? What kind of equipment was chosen and why? How were
handling issues addressed? What were the limitations (if any) of the
process(es) that was chosen? You may need to use e-mail and/or the
telephone to obtain this information; you may not be able to fully rely on
information you find on the Internet or in published literature.
2. Determine the best way to capture your collection, given the equipment
available to the class. Using at least 3 capture systems, perform test scans,
compare the results, and evaluate why the digitization system you choose best
meets the needs of your collection.
Documentation:
Due March 5:
1. Three-page write-up discussing the following:
-Description of your collection (physical and intellectual)
-Background research findings
-Which systems you propose to test and what tests you will perform.
2. Annotated bibliography of sources consulted
Due April 30:
1. Website containing the following:
-Your digital collection
-Your project documentation (what you turned in March 5 plus a synopsis
of the tests you performed and a justification of the system you chose)
-Intellectual information about the collection. (Julie Mosbo, our class TA,
can guide you in obtaining this information.)
2. Formal presentation of your project (research, tests, findings, results)