Interesting People, Interesting Blogs (Part 12)

This is the first installment of the new year of the much beloved blog post series called "Interesting People, Interesting Blogs," a place where the editor of The DIGITAL Archive (ahem, me) carefully examines and scrutinizes blogs and honours one for being very interesting.

For this installment, I have chosen "The Posterity Project," a blog written by Gordon Belt, an information professional with a background in special libraries and archival administration who is based in Nashville, Tennessee. According to Belt, The Posterity Project is

a blog chronicling news and issues related to archives, history, civic responsibility, and open access to public records, with reflections on archives and history in the "Volunteer State" of Tennessee.

I chose this blog for three reasons:

1. The impressive volume of timely and quality content

Impressive volume is an understatement. Belt writes prolifically on archives matters and links extensively to other websites. My personal favorite is the Weekly Roundup, where he cites interesting tid-bits from newspaper articles, blog posts, and websites. At times, The Posterity Project blog seems to transcends the usual blog formatg and becomes more like a large resource center.

2. Clean layout and design

With so much content, one would believe a blog would soon become a disorganized mess, but Belt manages to keep his layout clean and streamlined, a difficult feat considering some blogging platforms. (Cough, blogger, cough.)

3. Highlights the value of regional blogging

While The Posterity Project covers historical and archival stories and issues from across the United States and beyond, Belt makes a solid effort in showcasing local and regional historical and archival resources in his home state of Tennessee. One impressive feature incorporated in the blog (which should be emulated by other blogs, in my opinion) is the use of Google Maps in displaying an interactive map of archives in the state of Tennessee. Very well done. I hope other historians and archivists in Tennesse (and elsewhere) are reading The Posterity Project.

Photo credit kevindooley

Interesting People, Interesting Blogs (Part 11)

Here we are, together again, for yet another installment of our much beloved blog post series "Interesting People, Interesting Blogs," a place where we highlight a website that has caught the critical and unflinching eye of the author of this blog. Together, we made it to Part 11.

For this installment, I have chosen a blog originating from Scotland, UK. (Yes, I read 'em all!) The blog is called Web Watching for Archivists and is written by Kiara King, an assistant records manager. According to her 'about this blog' section:

This blog has been set up principally to support a presentation that I will give in August at the Society of Archivist's conference on the subject of Web 2.0 and archivists. I wanted a place where I could bring together the different examples that I will refer to in my talk so that it can act as a 'repository' for these examples and allow easy reference back to them in the future. I hope it can be used as a showcase for the best examples of archives and archivists using Web 2.0 today.

While her blog started life as a presentation and has been a little quiet lately (a recent blog post, however, confirms, she is still active), I feel her focus on Archives 2.0 is something more of us in the community should know exists. And I hope by showcasing her here, she will continue to blog and add her voice to the blogosphere. Ms. King also embedded a short PowerPoint presentation, which I have embedded below.

Archives 2.0

View SlideShare presentation or Upload your own. (tags: archives2.0 archives)

Interesting People, Interesting Blogs (Part 10)

Wowza! This is the tenth--yes, tenth!--installment of one of my favourite blog post categories. Interesting People, Interesting Blogs, where I write about a blog that recently caught my attention (and drive server-crashing traffic to its doors). Well, maybe not, but I certainly hope I am shedding light on an interesting blog.

The tenth installment goes to an archivist named Heather, blogging over at Archives Found. The blog's tag line caught my eye: "Making history more accessible, one story at a time." In the about section, Heather elaborates on the goals of her blog:

I wanted to choose a catchy title, something that spoke about the experiences that I’m having, and that I hope to have in the future. An overgeneralization that works here– when I meet people for the first time, and we do the dance of the “what do you do? I’m in marketing, blah… how about you?” and I mention that I am an archivist, the general response is to ask what, exactly an archivist is. The same reaction happens when I mentioned that I was attending graduate school for library science– not only is there confusion about what an archivist is, but there’s also the much-hated response of “You need a master’s degree to check out books?” It seems that there is a need for general education regarding the fields of librarianship, archives, and even records management.

I have not drilled very deep into the content. But if someone is keen on making history more accessible, then I am in.

Interesting People, Interesting Blogs (Part 9)

The latest blog to be inducted into the coveted "Interesting People, Interesting Blogs" category of The DIGITAL Archive is Lynne M. Thomas's "Confessions of a Curator," which, in the author's words, is "a blog about Rare Books and Special Collections at Northern Illinois University."

Hey, check it out!

Interesting People, Interesting Blogs (Part 8)

If you are reading this post on a Saturday or Sunday, then I caught you at the right time (if not, I hope you have a few minutes to spare).

I want you to visit a blog called Zen Habits, a blog that mixes productivity, life hacks, with a soulful Zen twist. It is written by Leo Babauta who covers a variety of timely topics, including: "achieving goals, productivity, being organized, GTD, motivation, eliminating debt, saving, getting a flat stomach, eating healthy, simplifying, living frugal, parenting, happiness, and successfully implementing good habits."

This is not your ordinary productivity/life hack website, I have discovered. As the author explains, "...I believe that goals — especially ones that are worth reaching — are ultimately achieved through the building of good habits." Becoming a better Microsoft Outlook user is one thing; becoming a better human being is another.

In an effort to simplify my life, I am finding his material easily applicable and refreshing.

Interesting People, Interesting Blogs (Part 7)

Another installment to what has become a personal favorite of mine.

I came across Dan Cohen's Digital Humanities Blog while examining one of his books, Digital history: a guide to gathering, preserving, presenting the past on the web (which seems like an equally good read as well, but that's another topic).

I like this blog because it focuses on how research in the humanities can benefit from current and emerging technologies such as digitization and Web 2., including a cool Firefox add-on called Zotero, a social bookmarking and citation organizer tool that harnesses the community of researchers in the humanities field. Very cool.

Interesting People, Interesting Blogs (Part 6)

In this installment of my long-running series, I found a blog called ArchivesNext. It is a blog that focuses on "what's next" for the archival field - how can new web technologies (Web 2.0) transform archives and access to archives collections.

I have not read the blog in its entirety, but I am very encouraged by its About this Blog page.

This blog will attempt to identify what might be “next” for archival institutions by:

1) Exploring Web 2.0 applications and discussing their applicability to archival institutions.

2) Identifying existing innovative uses of web technology in archives and related fields.

3) Discussing how applicable the existing archival business model is in the current and emerging information environment, and proposing modifications or a whole new model.

4) Hopefully engaging readers in a dialog about these issues–I am by no means an expert in any of these areas. I am learning and hopefully some of the four or five people who read this blog will share with me and the other readers what they know or raise questions. I can’t be the one interested in this.

5) Probably doing some other stuff as well.

Please do pay ArchivesNext a visit.

Interesting People, Interesting Blogs (Part 5)

While doing the usual ego-surfing, er, I mean web browsing, I came across the following blog that cited my active archives-related blogs (the one you are reading now and another called arch.i.vi.us).

I hereby present the "interesting people, interesting blog" to ArchivesBlogs, "a collection of blogs by and for archivists." It was developed and is maintained by Mark A. Matienzo.

I like the concept and I like the blog, for it reflects an "Archives 2.0" attitude that is desperately needed in the archival field. Essentially, ArchivesBlogs syndicates content from blogs that discuss archives and archival issues of importance and relevance to archivists.

Also, kudos to Mark for tinkering around with a web application called Plagger, which powers ArchivesBlogs. Perhaps he should write and make available documentation so that non-technical archivists can start something similar.

Interesting People, Interesting Blogs (Part 4)

I found yet another noteworthy blog. File Formats Blog is a blog by Gary McGath, a Digital Library Software Engineer at Harvard University Libraries. His blog focuses on "news and comments about technical issues relating to file formats, file validation, and archival software."

If you are interested in the digital preservation of file formats and examining solutions that will (hopefully) stand the test of time, then this is a blog for you.

Interesting People, Interesting Blogs (Part 3)

I came across yet another interesting blog; it is called "Annoyed Librarian." According to its author, the Annoyed Librarian blog "satirizes librarians, librarianship, and the ALA [American Library Association]."

This blog is by far one of the most witty, sharp, acidic, satirical--and essentially politically-incorrect--blogs about librarianship that I have ever come across.

The writer is clearly articulate and systematic in her (the writer is female) critique of the field of librarianship. Everything from library school and MLS degrees to job postings and salaries are examined in a tongue-in-cheek but ultimately brutal manner.

Interesting People, Interesting Blogs

In between scanning job sites and updating my resume this morning (ho-hum), I came across a blog by Eric Lease Morgan, Head of the Digital Access and Information Architecture Department at the University Libraries of Notre Dame (bio here).

Morgan's Infomotions, Inc. blog/consulting website offers some interesting insights--or musings, as he calls them--on library technology and its impact on delivering information.

More writings:

• Mass Digitization
• Introduction to Web Services
• Top Technology Trends, 2005