Best Practices in
Digitization and
Digital Curation at
McGill Libraries:
the Osler Library Prints
Collection
KarinaKawaguchi AlesiaRudnitskaya
XeniaKurguzova VickyVassiliou
Osler Library
of the History of Medicine
McGill University Library
The Osler Library of the History of Medicine
Sources: McGill Campus Scenes. http://www.mcgill.ca/photos/2003/january/
Osler Library. The William Osler Photo Collection. http://digital.library.mcgill.ca/osler/large/CUS_033-001_P.jpg
Osler Library
Prints Collection
•
Value: historic and artistic
•
Themes
•
Physical properties
Let’s digitize!
Budget – special donation
Technology: scanners in place
Staffing:
 team of librarians
 specialized experts and support staff brought in
McGill’s Best Practices
Repository Functions
The OAIS Functional Model
Source: Reference Model for an Open Archival Information System (OAIS).
http://public.ccsds.org/publications/archive/650x0m2.pdf
Best Practices
Digital images: standards and quality
TIFF
•Storage
JPEG
• Access and
delivery
Best Practices
 Thumbnails/full
record/full
screen/zoom
 Scalable view
(up to 6,450px
× 4,500px)
 High quality
resolution (up
to 15 KB)
Best Practices
Comprehensive finding aids and rich metadata
Exhaustive
annotations
• each digital
object described
by art
historian/curator
Dublin Core
metadata scheme
• easy to use
• interoperable
• OAI-PMH –
compliant
Controlled
vocabulary
• LC subject
headings
• authority files
Best Practices
Comprehensive finding aids and rich metadata
Best Practices
Comprehensive finding aids and rich metadata
Best Practices
Display and access
 user-centered
interface
 ease of navigation
 visual aids
 multiple access
points
Best Practices
High quality
digital images
Accessibility
Information discovery
Preservation
Comprehensive
and precise
finding aids and
rich metadata
Contribution to knowledge
Usability of the
Website
Challenges
Challenges
• Documentation of policies
•
Preservation strategies and contingency
planning
•
Copyright
• Visibility on the web
References
•
Besser, H., Hubbard, S., & Lenert, D. (2003). Introduction to imaging. Los Angeles: Getty Research Institute.
•
International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA). (2002). Guidelines for digitization projects for
collections and holdings in the public domain, particularly those held by libraries and archives. Retrieved from
http://www.ifla.org/publications/guidelines-for-digitization-projects-for-collections-and-holdings-in-the-public-domain
•
Federal Digitization Initiative Still Image Working Group. (2009). Technical guidelines for digitizing cultural heritage
materials: Creation of raster image master files. Retrieved from
http://www.digitizationguidelines.gov/guidelines/FADGI_Still_Image-Tech_Guidelines_2010-08-24.pdf
•
Humanities Advanced Technology and Information Institute, University of Glasgow (HATII) and The National Initiative
for a Networked Cultural Heritage (NINCH). (2003). The NINCH guide to good practice in the digital representation
and management of cultural heritage materials. Retrieved from
http://www.nyu.edu/its/pubs/pdfs/NINCH_Guide_to_Good_Practice.pdf
•
National Information Standards Organization (NISO). (2007). A framework of guidance for building good digital
collections. Retrieved from http://www.niso.org/publications/rp/framework3.pdf
•
RLG-NARA Task Force on Digital Repository Certification. (2005). An audit checklist for the certification of trusted
digital repositories. Retrieved from http://www.crl.edu/sites/default/files/attachments/pages/trac_0.pdf
•
RLG/OCLC Working Group on Digital Archive Attributes, Research Libraries Group, & OCLC. (2002). Trusted digital
repositories: Attributes and responsibilities : an RLG-OCLC report. Mountain View, CA: RLG.
Acknowledgements
•
Christopher Lyons, Head of the Osler
Library
•
Megan Chellew, Metadata Librarian
Questions?
Thank you!
alesia.rudnitskaya@mail.mcgill.ca
karina.kawaguchi@mail.mcgill.ca
vicky.vassiliou@mail.mcgill.ca
ksenia.kurguzova@mail.mcgill.ca