Digital Humanities is often defined as 'the intersection of computing and the disciplines of the humanities'. It combines aspects of computing and digitisation with traditional humanities subjects such as history, literature and politics. The development of this concept began in the 1940s, when research began to take the form of databases to store information (Kirschenbaum, 2010). Since then, developments in computing made it easier for the general public to access research material that may have previously been inaccessible. This essay will address the question of what makes a good digital humanities resource, under the following headings: presentation, content, features, usability and best practice implementation. The essay will review the …show more content…
It is important to maintain a high level of usability. According to conventions regarding digital collections, digital resources should be 'broadly available and avoid any unnecessary impediments to use' (NISO Framework Working Group, 2007). Most digital resources for historical documents don't usually require the use of any browser specific tags (Schreibman, S., Siemens, R. and Unsworth, J., 2004). For this reason it is fully expected that the website be totally functional in all web browsers. All of the website's key features were tested in chrome, firefox and internet explorer for desktop, as well as in chrome on android. The website was found to work in all browsers I used for testing. Therefore the website is usable from both desktop, mobile and tablet devices. All downloadable ebooks available on this website are available as .mobi files as well as EPUB files. Mobi is a file format for viewing ebooks on devices such as PDAs, smart phones and tablets. This makes the ebooks also accessible on all browser devices. It is also important for curators of the resource to keep up to date on new technologies and information mediums to ensure that their digital resource always remains relevant (Schreibman, S., Siemens, R. and Unsworth, J., 2004). Office of the Historian's homepage contains links to both its twitter and tumblr accounts, which shows latest posts about …show more content…
I found the search feature for this website to be particularly useful. Because Office of the Historian is such an expansive digital resource, it is important for the user to be able to easily refine their search to find exactly what they are looking for. As well as a search box, the user can use check boxes to narrow down the scope of the results. For example, checking the 'historical documents' box will narrow down your search to historical documents only. The search engine also allows the user to use boolean operators (“and” and “or”) to refine a search, and to use the wildcard characters '?' or '*' in place of a letter when you're not sure of the spelling. In addition, searching for two keywords will return documents that contain those two phrases anywhere in a document. To find only documents that contain specific, ordered combinations of two words, you can use quotation marks around your search term. For example, searching “nuclear weapon” will return documents that contain the phrase in that exact order and combination only (Randolph, 2015). The search features mentioned above make research a lot easier because the user can find exactly what they are looking for quickly and efficiently. This is an important aspect of any good digital resource, particularly for larger collections that contain a lot of documents and resources. Office of the Historian also offers tags divided into three
Receiving the opportunity to check one of my completed compositions created leverage to strengthen elements of my oeuvre. This reflection consists of a process of dissection, scrutiny, and close reassessment. As a writer in the editing and revision stage, I examined particular features throughout my essay including background information about the topic, credible evidence to support overall claims, and grammar and sentence structure.
As stated, the City-County Library uses its website to keep patrons apprised of not only what it owns, but also what it can provide access to. Available via the web is access to the catalog and electronic resources, downloadable audio and e-books, a browsable list of new titles, links to reciprocal lending institutions, and a calendar of upcoming library events.... ... middle of paper ... ... Searching and discovery is thus more structured as is evidenced by the archive’s use of a file and expanding the outline system of search and organization that necessitates use of the folder list found in the finding aid.
...ction of digital information. It help better people’s knowledge of the communication between society, technology, information, and technology for actions of scholarly research. It tries to further the public obligation on encouragement through the Digital Public Library of America. The program targets on problem related to information and computing facts, broad connection to in site, and computational research, intellectual connections.
Even thought in the last years new activities and new research opportunities have emerged from the intersection between the humanities and the world of digital technologies, what we call today digital humanities, represents an undefined and heterogenous set of studies and practices that aims at understanding the implications and the opportunities that digital technologies can provide as media, tools, or objects of study in the humanities [1, 2].
Traditionally historians have acquired their data by visiting libraries and archive collections. On visiting these libraries and archives to carry out their research, the first port of call for most historians upon arrival was usually to seek assistance from the librarian or the archivist, who in turn referred them to a card index or printed guide (Organ et al, 1996). However over the last twenty to thirty years the world has experienced the internet revolution. In this essay we will discuss how has the internet changed the way historians work?
The digital age has altered not only humanities, but also life as we have known it. Realizing what is being done – that techniques, data and information from the digital realm is being infiltrated into every aspect of our lives - we can make sure that we stay connected to the rest of the world. Although popular literacy and orality are important aspects to keep humans from drifting from these fundamental elements, history and philosophy play an important role as well. Overall, humanities are a building-block to the past, a link to the present and a glimpse into the future. It provides a view into the digital cultural shift and helps society understand the world while bringing clarity to the future.
Wikipedia, an online information center, has significantly changed the face of encyclopedias and scholarly journals over the last ten years. It is quickly taking books, journals, and money out of the equation for research. Wikipedia has created a new way to gather information, social network, and do research. Although Wikipedia has its positive uses it is not always a reliable source and is best used as a starting point for research.
Digital humanities are an area or work at the intersection of digital technology and humanities disciplines. It also can be defined as every act of moving humanistic material into digital formats that provides introductory materials to digital approaches relevant to a wide range of disciplines for research and teaching purpose. The combination of the methodologies from traditional humanities disciplines that focus on the arts, philosophy, theater, literature, dance and cultural studies with tools provided by digital technology in computing such as information retrieval, data mining, data visualization, digital mapping and statistics have been made to develop from the fields of humanities computing to data mining large cultural
Through the years works of literature have been distributed through many different means. These means usually reflect and take advantage of the latest technologies. Dominant sources of literature have changed over time. Today, instead of scouring though the local library’s card catalog, prospective readers will likely log onto Amazon to find the latest book in their favorite genre. Media technology has made communicating increasingly easier as time has passed throughout history. Everyone is now encouraged to use media tools and is expected to have a general understanding of the various technologies available. Only time will tell what the future will hold for electronic media. The present avenues may one day be looked back upon as today’s Library of Alexandria and be just another ruin in the history of literature.