Governance / Digital Collections Users' Group Meeting: December 21, 2011

Digital Collections Users' Group Meeting: December 21, 2011

Members present: Ellen Corrigan (Eastern Illinois University), Eben English (Loyola University Chicago), Ginger Frere (Newberry Library), Peter Hepburn (University of Illinois at Chicago), Meg Miner (Illinois Wesleyan University), Laurie Sauer (Chair, Knox College), Julia Thompson (Western Illinois University)

Members absent: Chris Day (School of the Art Institute of Chicago), David Levinson (Lake Forest College)

CARLI Staff Liaisons present: Amy Maroso

Confirmed Ginger as minutes taker.

Minutes from the November meeting were approved with corrections.

Subcommittee reports

  1. Communication & Outeach - Eben reported that the subcommittee met on November 16th. The Image of the Week series is progressing and a new image is being published every two weeks. Tweets have been sent out less frequently but will become more frequent in the future. Ten or eleven people expressed interest in a Chicago Area Meet-up. A date will be set after the holidays. The team has been gathering resources for a new best practices guide on promoting digital collections. This information is being posted on the DCUG wiki.

  2. Documentation & Standards- Ellen reported that the final drafts of the "Best Practices" guides for images and text had been sent to the whole committee for comments.

    1. It was suggested that two notes be added to Digitization Best Practices for Images (Peter). The first note would concern the collection of technical metadata and the second would suggest that Digitization Best Practices for Text be consulted when digitizing maps with text.
    2. Suggested edits to Digitization Best Practices for Text (Eben) included:
      1. The addition of a note recommending that the software documentation be consulted to get the best results when scanning text.
      2. Clarification of the issues with OCR and cursive handwriting.
      3. Expand information on OCR software options. Indicate that DCUG does not endorse any one product.

  3. Usability – Ginger reported that the subcommittee is continuing to look at the Google Analytics reports. After the end of the year, Jessica will provide reports for the fourth quarter for the group to review.

  4. Digital Preservation - Laurie reported that the subcommittee met the first week in December. They discussed ways to increase the opportunities for education on digital preservation. A save-the-date message for the April forum will be sent out shortly.

"Anatomy of a Digital Project" series:

  1. Registration for the Lightweight Project Management for Digitization Projects webinar (Tues. Jan. 17 at 2:00 pm) is open. Eben asked that a note be added to the CARLI blog.

  2. Digitization for Access and Discovery (Feb. 21 at 2:00 pm) - Planning is underway and there are no problems to report.

  3. Promoting collections (Wed. Mar 28 at 10:00 am)- There were no updates to report for this session.

  4. Digital Preservation (April 10, all day, in-person at the I Hotel in Champaign) - There were no updates to report. The planning for this workshop is complete.

  5. Grants/funding - Ellen reported that some speakers have been confirmed for this session, including Pam Hackbart-Dean (SIUC), and Laurie and Ginger from DCUG, but she is still seeking one more speaker. The format will be an all-day forum/workshop, with May 3rd as the first choice of date. Amy will check on the availability of the iHotel in Champaign. Ellen will prepare the proposal for submission to the CARLI Program Planning committee.

  6. Connecting Your Digital Collections to the Curricula at Your Institution - Peter reported that Jane Darcovich has agreed to be the speaker. Tuesday May 15th was suggested as a tentative date for this session.

  7. Contracting with Vendors for Digitization Services - Meg reported that the speaker has not committed to a date for this session. It was decided to drop this presentation from the current webinar series and revisit the topic in the future.

New Business 

There was no new business to discuss.

Conference Reporting

Eben reported that he attended the annual meeting of the Coalition for Networked Information in Washington, DC, however there was nothing of significant relevance to the group to report. Peter will be attending ALA mid-winter and will have an opportunity to present in Aruba in March.