Picture This – Digital Photos and Records Management

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The National Archives, University of Washington, and City of Seattle (along with local government agencies in Oregon) have joined together to offer an educational opportunity to Records Managers and Archivists in the Northwest region. A flyer has been published that contains the following details:

Picture This – Digital Photos and Records Management
May 2, 2006 Portland, Oregon
May 4, 2006 Seattle, Washington

Speakers:

Bill Greathouse
National Archives and Records Administration

John Bolcer
University of Washington – Special Collections

Julie Viggiano
City of Seattle Municipal Archives

Time and Location:

May 2nd – Portland, Oregon
2 pm to 4 pm
Multnomah County Central Library -
US Bank Room
Directions and address at http://www.multcolib.org/agcy/cen.html

May 4th – Seattle, Washington
10 am to 12 pm
Museum of History and Industry
Directions and address at:
http://www.blogger.com/www.seattlehistory.org/visit_map.cfm

Cost: FREE

To register contact:

Jennifer Winkler
Telephone: (206) 684-8154
Email: CRMP@seattle.gov
PLEASE REGISTER BY APRIL 25th

Is your office entering the digital age?

Records Managers and Archivists face a number of challenges in today’s rapidly growing digital world. One of these challenges is the sheer number of photos that are taken by employees on digital cameras. The days of a central photographer are diminishing as digital cameras are becoming less expensive and easy to use. Digital photos have all the traditional problems associated with film produced photos (labeling, etc.), but are also subject to the same difficulties we face in dealing with any electronic record. Our speakers will discuss the various aspects of collecting, identifying and managing these unique records.

The absence of textual information (metadata) associated with the photograph, the propensity to create many more photographs than are used to document the subject, software obsolescence and compatibility, the relatively large size of the digital files, and records retention are all issues. Bill Greathouse will discuss these challenges and provide some best practices as solutions, drawing upon his 20 years of experience as a records manager.

Digital institutional repositories employ open-source software to acquire, manage, and ideally, preserve digital files of all sorts. John Bolcer, the University Archivist for the University of Washington, will demonstrate the open-source, web-based repository system called DSpace which the UW Libraries are using to manage digital objects in their collections. Issues to be addressed will include system implementation, requirements and challenges, reference capabilities, and preservation management.

Julie Viggiano, Assistant City Archivist for Visual Resources at the Seattle Municipal Archives, will be speaking about the new Visual Documentation Services program at the City of Seattle. As the Program Manager, Julie will present a case study about managing City-wide digital image files and making them accessible to the public. The discussion will include the importance of managing digital images, how the SMA is approaching the issue and where she hopes the program will go in the future.

Hosted by:

City of Seattle - City Clerk's Office
National Archives and Records Administration - Pacific Alaska Region
University of Washington - Records Management Services
City of Portland - City Auditor Office
Multnomah County - Records Services