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Created by Annabel Pinkney and Hillary Kativa

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Using the Digital Collections

The Science History Institute Digital Collections program was spearheaded in 2018. The application is managed by software developers Eddie Rubiez (erubiez@sciencehistory.org) and Jonathan Rochkind (jrochkind@sciencehistory.org).

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To add or remove administrators of the Digital Collections site, see instructions on the Digital Collections wiki page, here.

Create and Edit Digital Records

From Scratch

1. Login to Digital Collections Production or Staging Site
2. Select “Dashboard” located along the top bar.
3. Select “Create new work” from the blue icon near the top of the screen.
4. Add/edit metadata, following the guidelines given for each field, accessible here:

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1. Select “Create Work” from the blue icon in the top right corner.
2. When prompted with file addition, either select “Cancel” and “Okay,” or proceed to the Ingest Images section of this document.
3. Perform quality checks and publish the work once images have been ingested.

From the Digitization Queue

1. Login to Digital Collections Production or Staging Site
2. Select “Dashboard” located along the top bar.
3. Select “Digitization Queue” from the left menu.
4. Select the collecting area to which the object you have digitized belongs.
5. Select the queue entry for the object.
6. Select “Create new attached work” from the blue icon under the item status.
7. Follow steps 4 through 6 in the ‘From Scratch’ section, above.
8. Change digitization queue information to indicate “Individual metadata completed” from the digital object’s Metadata tab when you are finished editing the record.
9. Perform quality checks and publish the work once images have been ingested.

Edit Existing Records

1. Consult the Metadata Guidelines document for metadata input.
2. Login to Digital Collections Production Site https://digital.sciencehistory.org/login
3. Locate the work to which you’d like to add metadata: either search via keyword on the front end (https://digital.sciencehistory.org/) or select “Dashboard” located along the top bar and use the back end search options.
4. Click on the work title to open.
5. Click the “Edit” button found either below or beside the title.
6. Add/edit metadata, following the guidelines given for each field. Information on each field can be found in the Metadata Guidelines document linked above.
7. Click “Update Work” found in the upper right-hand corner to save changes.

Change Thumbnail/Representative Media

1. Open the work you’d like to update.
2. Click on the “Edit” button found below/beside the title.
3. Scroll down to the bottom of the metadata edit form and select “Representative Thumbnail” for the Thumbnail/Representative Media you’d like to use.
4. Click the “Update Work” button found in the upper right-hand corner.

Create and Edit Child Works

This feature allows members of a work (book pages or other associated content) to become individual works. As an example, one may decide to turn an individual plate from a larger volume into a child work so the individual plate will be discoverable in a search and additional metadata specific to the individual plate can be added. See example record, Atlanta Fugiens.

1. When viewing parent work (e.g., volume) from the public interface, find an image you’d like to turn into a child work (e.g., bookplate) by clicking on “Edit” then click on the “Members” tab to view files associated with the record.
2. Click on “Admin” then select “Convert to child work” to create child work.
3. Proceed by inputting metadata as detailed above in “Edit a Pre-existing Record.”
4. Click on “Update Work” in the upper right-hand corner to save changes.
5. Perform quality checks and publish the work.

Add Members to a Child Object:

Children of a parent record can also have members. Adding members to a child is the same process as adding members to a parent.

1. Open the parent object in the back end and select the “Members” tab.
2. Select the child work you wish to add members to by clicking its title.
3. Select the “Members” tab of the child object.
4. Choose “Files” from the gray Add New Members icon.
5. Add image files from the cloud or locally. Follow directions in the Ingest Images section, below.

Ingest Digital Assets

Ingesting Files to the Cloud:

1. Locate images in the M: drive for the object you wish to ingest. Files can be located by following the path M:\Collecting area\Object ID or Sierra Bib #.
2. Once you have navigated to file(s) or file folder to be ingested, copy the folder containing the images files to M:\Ready for Ingest
   1. Refrain from cutting and pasting so you don’t lose any files.
3. Files will disappear from M:\Ready for Ingest once ingested; there may be a delay before files are present in Digital Collections app.

Adding Files to a Digital Collections Record:

1. Open the record you’d like to add images to
2. On the record’s Works page, click on Members tab
3. Click on “Add new members from files”
4. Click “Add from Cloud” and select files or folder containing files (confirm all files have been ingested first). Alternatively, choose “Browse” to add local files.
   1. Note: the digital collections can only ingest about 150 files at once.
5. After submitting, a red box will appear next to the member that states “Waiting on ingest”
6. Refresh screen to view ingest progress (large file sets can take time to ingest)
7. Once files have been ingested, move files on M: to Ingested folder
8. Be sure to update the digitization queue status (i.e., "awaiting digitization," "post-production completed,") if necessary so it is accurate for all items. Set status to “closed” when all work is complete.

Troubleshooting

If there appears to be an error ingesting files to the digital collections, monitor changes or errors by selecting the ‘Job Queues’ link located in the left-hand menu of the Digital Collections dashboard.

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                Jonathan Rochkind: jrochkind@sciencehistory.org

Git Hub Tickets

When new software functionality is desirable or in need of improvement, it is necessary to enter a ticket, or create an ‘Issue’ on GitHub. To create an Issue:

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It may also be beneficial to view previous GitHub Issues to note ongoing progress or previous attempts in updating the site.

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Digitization

Digitization is completed in the 3^rd Floor Digitization Studio for books and two-dimensional objects, and the 6^th floor Photography Studio for three-dimensional objects. Digitization is completed using a Digital Transitions Phase One camera back with remote-tethered shooting using Capture One software.

Books and 2-D Objects

A comprehensive procedural manual for using the digitization studio Phase One camera, copy-stand, cradle, and Capture One software is available here:

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                Epson Scanning Procedures

3-D Objects

Photography of 3-D objects is not conducted in house as of June 2020. Urgent or requested 3-D photography is fulfilled by an external contract photographer, with photographer fees paid by the patron requesting the photography. For more information regarding contacting an external photographer, please see the following documentation:

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3-D Collections Photography Manual (TBD)

File Management and Digital Preservation

Digital collection record assets are created on the Digitization Studio Macintosh. Image files are created in TIFF format using a Phase One IQ3 digital back camera and processed using Capture One software. Phase One Session data is saved to Users/Shared on the Mac.

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Upon ingesting images to the digital collections, a preservation copy of the file is automatically added to AWS Glacier remote cloud storage.

File Management and Retention Schedules

Files stored on the digitization studio Mac and shared M: drive should be deleted regularly to assure ample space is available for continuous digitization.

Files should be deleted from the M: drive first, and files from the Mac should be deleted second. Retention criteria encompass any files that are integral or supplemental to an unpublished or unfinished digital record.

Shared M: Drive Retention Schedule

Before deleting, check that files have already been ingested into the Digital Collections!

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Review Retention Schedule: Annually – Next review date: February 2022

Digitization Studio Macintosh Retention Schedule

Before deleting, check that files have already been ingested into the Digital Collections!

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Review Retention Schedule: Annually – Next review date: February 2022

Quality Control 

Prior to exporting photos, it is important to quality control your images. Use Capture One image viewer to verify the following:

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• In the program, navigate to the folder where your files are stored
• Adjust settings to assign textual prefix and sequence number suffix
• Confirm filename is accurate in preview column before clicking on “Rename”

Troubleshooting

Please consult the following resources for digitization troubleshooting assistance:

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Or, contact our Digital Transitions representative, Wayne Cozzolino at wlc@digitaltransitions.com or Office: 212-529-6825  ext. 2330, Cell: 215-900-8865

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Collection Workflows

Curators are primarily responsible for the selection of digitization candidates. The Digital Collections Librarian may advise as necessary. For guidelines regarding the selection of new materials for the digital collections, view the following document:

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Modern Library

Communicate with the Head of Reference and Reader Services to assess collection priorities, monitor the digitization queue, and discuss quality control issues.

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Monthly, the Digital Collections Librarian will run a report listing the additions and changes to digital objects from the Modern Library collection. The Head of Reference and Reader Services will review the records and make additions as necessary.

Rare Books

Photography for materials from the rare book department is completed by the rare book curator.

1. Rare Books or Modern Library curator selects item(s) for digitization.
2. For each item, the curator will create an entry in the Rare Book Digitization Queue.
   1. In the Instructions and/or Additional notes fields, curator inputs any provenance or other information that DC Librarian wouldn’t be able to find from basic research.
3. Rare Books curator digitizes rare books as usual.
   1. Once books are digitized, the final images are processed to a new folder in M:\Rare Books
4. Rare Books curator changes the queue entry status from ‘Awaiting dig on cart’ to “Post production completed’ in the Rare Books Digitization Queue.
5. Digital Collections Librarian monitors the queue status changes. Creates a digital record from the queue entry/ingest images using the images saved to M:\Rare Books by the curator.
   1. For assistance in describing rare books, there is often pertinent information recorded in the item’s OPAC record or the Roy G. Neville collection catalog volumes

Museum

Communicate with the Museum Registrar to assess collection priorities, monitor the digitization queue, and discuss quality control issues.

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If a digital object description from the museum collection is edited: send any additions or changes in metadata to the registrar to add the alterations to Past Perfect.

Archives & Photographs

Communicate with the Chief Curator of Archives and Manuscripts to assess collection priorities, monitor the digitization queue, and discuss quality control issues.

1. Chief Curator of Archives selects items for digitization, pulls items, and creates an entry for each item in the Archives Digitization Queue.
2. Chief Curator of Archives places items selected for digitization on the table in the rare book room.
3. Digital Collections Librarian collects the items, digitizes, and returns to the rare book room.
   1. Do not leave collections in the Digitization Studio
4. Digital Collections Librarian creates and publish records for the queue items.
   1. For assistance in describing archival objects, view the object record in Past Perfect or access the finding aid through the OPAC.
5. Chief Curator of Archives retrieves and re-shelves items.

Oral Histories

Oral histories are created by the Center for Oral History. Upon entering an oral history number in the metadata form, the record back-end will automatically transform to accommodate additional capabilities such as audio file derivative combination, adding searchable transcript .txt files, and restricting files to various levels of privacy.

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Workflows for each category are linked above. Oral history files are permanently stored on the J: drive.

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Rights and Reproductions

For detailed instructions on how to conduct digital reproduction request procedures, see the following document:

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Monitor the Rights and Reproductions Queue in the digital collections to note internal reproductions requests.

Sharing External Links in Egnyte

1. Copy the image into a folder with the patron’s name to P:\Special Collections\External Access
2. Log into Egnyte here: https://sciencehistory.org/files
3. Navigate to your newly created folder.
4. Underneath the file path, select the Share dropdown menu, then click “Share Folder Link”.
5. Select Email Link and email the link to the patron or staff member requesting images.

Note the links you have shared in the past by selecting ‘My Links’ in the site’s header bar.

Tracking

Reference or Rights and Reproductions inquiries may come through Digital and Reproductions email accounts or be forwarded by another staff member. 

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                Rights and Reproductions Log

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Statistics

Digital Collections Monthly Reports

Additions and changes to the digital collections should be tracked using the following spreadsheet:

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Entries should exclude Digital Collections additions from large scale projects, such as grant-funded mass digitization projects and/or internal project such as transferring oral histories while retiring the microsite.

Google Analytics Monthly Report

Log in to Google Analytics at https://analytics.google.com through a Google Account associated with your Science History email address. Contact Clare Hirai, the Institute’s Webmaster, to be added to the account.

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Change Google Analytics timeline to encompass the entirety of the previous month. Fill in the spreadsheet with new data acquired from GA.

Newsletter Featured Items

Using a Google Account associated with your Science History email address, contact Dana Rodriguez, the Institute’s Web Content Manager to be added you to the monthly spreadsheet.

Add 5 -7 digital objects for each themed week of the month by the Thursday prior.

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APPENDIX A: Referenced Documents and P:\ Locations

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