Elements to Consider in Planning Your Project

It is not essential to spend a great deal of time on these policies, especially when an organization is developing its first digital project or Website, or a new collection of pages for an existing site. These policies should be modified as the project evolves and as you acquire more experience with how the project can meet your organization's needs. Policies on mission and scope of the project should consider the following:

What Are Your Goals? What do you want the project to accomplish? Are you expanding outreach, improving access to a wider audience that can't easily come to your site or can't come during your regular hours? Do you want to improve preservation of the materials by reducing handling of originals? How do your project goals fit into your organization's larger strategic plan?

Who Will Use The Information? It is important to design for your intended audience and keep their needs in mind as you plan and develop your project. Will they be educators, students, researchers, family historians, the general public, etc.? Do not forget the purpose of your project is to communicate with your audience. Effective project plans are based on answers to questions about your audience such as:

How Will They Use The Information? What kind of information will the users want, and how will they want it packaged? How much do they know about the organization of library collections, museums, or archives? Will they phrase general or specific research questions? What are their computer and Internet skills? Do they need a lot of explanation and help, are they sophisticated users, or both? What are the users' computer resources?

What Resources Are Available? Acquiring the hardware and software for the system is only one portion of the process. Preservation of original materials after digitizing, managing back-up files, description and cataloging take time and effort, as do the design and development of your project. Estimates of time project that two hours of technology staff or maintenance may be required for every hour devoted to the preparation of an online digital library. Some estimates range as high as 20 to 1! In creating your original plan, offer a realistic estimate of the time required per image file to house, accession, scan, resize, create a catalog record and apply the file to your system. Plan for long term maintenance and eventual migration of your digital files. Don't assume existing resources devoted to an off-line equivalent will be able to absorb the additional work to support the Web service. On-line access to collections can significantly increase requests for research assistance, reproductions of photographs and other services.

Who Will Do The Work? Photographic experience is very helpful in learning to scan and adjust image files. Likewise, librarians, archivists, and curators have experience helpful in composing cataloging records (called metadata). Technical support and screen design are other specialized skills helpful for successful projects. If more than one person works on the project, it is essential that staff work closely together from the initial planning. Also, cataloging and digitizing are labor intensive and may require a skill level above that of minimum wage employees. If your current staff does not have the necessary skills, training should be included in the planning.

Who Is Responsible For The Project? As noted above, any large project will have many people working together. Ultimately, one individual must be designated to manage the project and make final decisions. This individual should have a strong grasp of the mission and scope of the entire project and an understanding of technological aspects, information organization, and interface design.

How Will Users Gain Access? Will your system be for in-house use by patrons and staff or will you make material available on the Web? Issues such as cultural sensitivity and copyright become especially important when image files are posted to the Web. In-house use generally considered "Fair Use" within your institution may not be "Fair Use" outside of your institution on the Web. Design questions include: How will you protect your files from being downloaded off the Web, or do you care? What software will you use? Who will create and maintain the in-house system and/or Website? Decisions about file size will be influenced by how your users will get access to the information. For example, small file sizes take less time to load and are preferred if your users use modems.

Copyright Issues, Who Owns The Rights? Generally, the law provides that a published item is protected under copyright for at least 75 years, unless produced by a government entity or unless the rights are transferred. Copyright remains with the producer of the item, his/her descendants, or designee, such as a publisher or employer, and must be transferred in writing. Unpublished material and that published after January 1, 1923, is protected under current copyright law and you should only reproduce such material with permission of the copyright holder. Donor agreements should include transfer of rights for unpublished material, and published material produced after January 1, 1923. If you are not certain about your institution's rights to publish an item, you should verify ownership and permissions before doing so.

What Material Will You Digitize? The size and physical conditions of the items will help decide what equipment and software will be necessary for your project. Photographs and fragile documents will require much more staff time and possibly specialized software, such as Photoshop, compared to printed items of a uniform size which might be able to be form fed. Grouping material can save significant time later in the project. You will also need to decide how you plan to digitize your collections: the most popular collections first, everything in a collection, regardless of value of specific items, or a representative sampling from many collections.

Preservation: After scanning it is important to correctly house and store your original, paper or source material, according to standard preservation practices. A good digitization program provides an excellent opportunity to preserve and maintain the original as a part of its plan. Photographs, documents, and artifacts can be properly rehoused, accessioned and stored in an improved environment. Generally this adds little to the cost of the project, and will add to the life of the collection. Preservation of original material is required in all projects supported by our Agency.

What Physical Facilities Are Available? Scanning projects require adequate space for computers, scanning devices, printers, peripherals, people and preservation, even if there is only one person working on the project. Plan for an appropriate amount of space in an environmentally appropriate location.

How Will You Store And Maintain The Information? The most popular current options are tape, compact disc and on a fixed disc. If you choose to store your image or text files on a hard drive store the files in formats recommended in the Agency guidelines. Plan for adequate back-up of data files, and for sufficient storage space for file servers if material will be available on the Web.

Describing and Cataloging Your Materials Using the Dublin Core Format

The combination of digital information, computers, and the Internet/Web in the coming years provides amazing new opportunities for Arizona’s cultural and historical institutions. Every citizen of the state, as well as many beyond, will increasingly be able to view the unique artifacts, documents, writings, photographs and maps held by the various museums, archives and libraries in Arizona and throughout the world.

In order to coordinate access to the collections in many institutions, these online resources will need to be created (scanned or digitized), indexed, organized and maintained in systems which are able to work together. The goal is to provide the same access to anyone, wherever they may be - Tuba City, Phoenix or Sierra Vista. Special vocabulary, called nomenclature, exists to help create metadata. It builds on a shared structure and vocabulary guide describing library, archives or museum items or collections.

You will need to organize the information about each item that you digitize into a database to provide access and permit searching. Representatives from libraries, archives, and museums and many other professions have created a brief list of 15 common universal cataloging elements to permit sharing across collections. This list of cataloging fields is called the Dublin Core. At its simplest it is a system that creates the indexes that work together. Almost every museum artifact, archival document, photograph, or publication can fit into some of these categories. The system has been designed for international use of a broad range of disciplines, such as government, the sciences, social sciences, humanities, and business.

Our agency has developed a template consistent with the Dublin Core guidelines that provides the minimum amount of information required to describe and catalog each item that you digitize. Descriptive information about the item that will be of interest to the patron, such as title, description, and format, will be organized into categories consistent with the Dublin Core cataloging standards.

All Dublin Core fields are repeatable, if necessary, to adequately describe your collection. For example: you may choose to list more than one subject heading.

We recommend the following Dublin Core fields be mandatory in your database creation: Title, Identifier, Publisher, Creator, Date, Subject, Description, and Type. The remaining fields are optional and can be used if your needs require this information.

Administrative information about the digital file itself - the date digitized, digital formats, etc. - will also be required if you maintain digital formats and has been included in the template. If desired, additional information about each item or collection can be included on your database.

If your catalog already exists in a structured database which follows established standards, it may be possible to create electronic links to the Dublin Core to eliminate re-entry of data. This process is called creating a "crosswalk" or link from your catalog field to the Dublin Core field for searching and retrieval. Crosswalk formats are currently being developed nationally, and may not be immediately available for you to implement. A sample crosswalk for the Arizona State Library, Archives and Public Records is listed in Attachment 7.

Take your time. Be thorough when describing and creating the items. The more description you give (for instance, all of the people in a photograph), the more valuable your information will be. Think creatively. A patron once asked us for pictures of hats—we had never cataloged "hats" in our database, but we watch for them now. Aspects that seem bizarre or unusual, like mesquite fences and peculiar shoes, as well as George Hunt’s spittoon in a photograph, can be a treasure to a particular researcher. On the other hand it is very time consuming and unwise to minutely over-describe an object or collection. Balance and good judgment are essential skills in the art of cataloging.

Above all, have fun! Looking closely at the treasures in your collection will not only provide better databases, but it will also make the experience more enjoyable.

Dublin Core

Note: White boxes denote mandatory fields.
Use n/a for not applicable.

Collection

A related group of items. Its parts may be separately described.

 

Dataset

Structured information. Examples: spreadsheets, databases, GIS data, midi data.

Note: unstructured numbers and words will normally be considered to be type text.

 

Event

A temporary occurrence. Examples: exhibition, web-cast, conference, workshop, opening-day, performance, battle, trial, wedding, tea-party, etc.

 

Image

Two dimensional reproduction or likeness, such as photographs, paintings, prints, drawings, other images and graphics, animations and moving pictures, film, diagrams, maps, musical notation.

Note: image may include both electronic and physical images.

 

Interactive resource

Requires user interaction to be understood or experienced. Examples: forms on web pages, applets, multimedia learning objects, chat services, virtual reality.

 

Model

An abstraction of the real thing, something that represents another thing. Examples: performance models, cost models, mechanical models, etc.

 

Party

A person, organization, cultural group, or institution.

 

Place

A geographic area.

 

Physical object

A three-dimensional object. Examples: a computer, the great pyramid, a sculpture, wheat, a butterfly.

Note: digital representations of, or surrogates for, these things should use image, text or one of the other types.

 

Service

A system that provides something of value to the end-user. Examples: a photocopying service, a banking service, an authentication service, interlibrary loans, Z39.50 or Web server.

 

Software

Data in source or compiled form essential to the operation of a computer.

Note: for software which exists only to create an interactive environment, use interactive resource instead.

 

Sound

Content is primarily audio or intended to be realized in audio. Examples: music, speech, recorded sounds.

Note: This category includes musical notation, including scores, which are unrealized in sound.

 

Text

Content is primarily words for reading. For example - books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists.

Note: facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre text.

The Type category may be repeated as necessary to include different categories. Examples are multimedia resources, which should include each appropriate category: and collections, which should include the heading "collection" and any other appropriate type(s) (e.g. "text", "image", etc.).

For additional information on the Type category see http://lcweb.loc.gov/marc/dc/typequalif-19991210.html

Database Selection and Organization

In the simplest terms, a database is an index. It is a tool, such as a catalog, which enables researchers to find what they seek.

The magic of a database is that it can allow sorting information many ways. If your collection includes photographs, brass items, and campaign buttons, it could be sorted to find all the items you have about Barry Goldwater’s presidential campaign, or all the photographs you have of Paul Fannin (even if it’s on a photograph featuring somebody else), or all the items created in 1964. Hidden treasures may be found.

Databases can be elaborate. Libraries often have created complex databases, called catalogs, which adhere to rigid standards and MARC format. The people who catalog this information have years of training and create sophisticated records that help library users. This also allows many English-speaking libraries to "pool" their resources and to share their catalogs online. The computers that drive these systems, and the software which organizes them, can frequently cost over $1 million.

Unless you are associated with a very large city, state, university or the federal government, you may need to find a way to do something similar with much less money and staff.

Choosing the database: The best way to do this is to use a good general database. Database software such as Microsoft Access or Claris Filemaker Pro can be purchased at computer stores or online and cost about $500. Filemaker will operate on both Mac and IBM-based systems, while Access currently works only on PC’s (IBM compatible Personal Computers). Unless you already have a Mac, it is probably better to use a PC at this time, as these dominate the market.

Less expensive databases, particularly older ones, may be proprietary, meaning they are written in a special language not all software can read. Proprietary databases make the transfer of data to new versions or other software difficult or impossible.

Exportability is one of the most important aspects in any database. This means that your data can be transferred to another database, either because you upgrade to a newer type or because you are linking (connecting) your information with other institutions, as many libraries do. The time is near when libraries, archives, museums and historical societies will all pool our information to help researchers find our resources.

To ensure that your database is exportable and will work with others, look for the following:

1. It can be exported in a DBF and can import DBF records. This is a universal file type that is recognized by all modern databases and should continue to recognizable in the foreseeable future.
2. It is flexible, yet simple. This feature is difficult to find. You should be able to create or adapt a "template" (what you see on your screen) without being a computer programmer.
3. You should be able to "define" the fields, their size, and have as many as you need. This means that you can create the database that helps you lay out Dublin Core fields, plus your own administrative information. Most databases limit the size and number of fields that can be exported in DBF and these limitations may be hidden in small print.
4. It should have unlimited capabilities. Many older databases "lockout" at a designated number of entries—5,000, 10,000 or more. You may not think you will ever reach that number, but you might be surprised. When records are merged someday, you may have millions of access points on your database.
5. It should be relational. You should be able to create several different databases (for example, one for the items in your collection and one for circulation) which can connect, without having to enter the information twice.

The two databases we currently recommend are Claris FilemakerPro and Microsoft Access. Both meet all of the above requirements. Filemaker is easier to use, but Access represents the evolving future standard. Users of both can be certain that the sizes of the user network (the number of people who have that program) are large and important enough that they will be exportable in the future.

Filemaker has the advantage of being Web- publishable, while both Filemaker and Access can be linked to digital files for Web display. Some other programs will automatically create or allow you to create HTML or SGML links, the code that allows the database to be used on the Web. Some of the specially designed programs for museums and archives have the same features and are easy to use. These tend to be more expensive, but if they are exportable and meet your needs, they may also be a good choice.

Formatting the database: We recommend that you enroll in a workshop or consult with our Agency staff about the layout of your database. Every institution’s needs are different. The basic fields explained in Dublin Core are the most important for future connections, and they probably will also be the most common ones that you will use. But you may have other needs— circulation status, provenance (the history of the item in your collection), relationships within your collection (like a spittoon that was once used by an important person—you might not like spittoons, but this one belonged to Gov. Hunt, so you keep it).

Once your computer hardware and database software are purchased it is important that you devote some time upfront becoming familiar with them. There is usually a tutorial. Going through the software carefully in the beginning will help you understand the boxes and layout that you might prefer, and find easy to work with. You can move fields around so that the ones important to you are where you see them first.

When including ID numbers for digital files in a database, be sure to include the extension format on all PC computers. These should look something like .jpg or .tif. This will allow you to link them to HTML or other query languages.

We have provided a sample template for Dublin Core records. Please use it if you wish, but also include elements and fields that are important to you. Give this considerable thought. It is much better to devote time laying out the database at the beginning, than it is to go back after you’ve created 5000 records and realize that you didn’t include the date of creation, or the physical description. Otherwise, after the fact, you might have to access each item’s record and add that information.

Digitization Guidelines

These are the recommended minimum guidelines for Arizona institutions involved in digitization projects in cooperation with the Arizona State Library, Archives and Public Records. Image files should be saved and scanned in at least three file sizes. Image files should not be cropped or altered, except for the removal of extraneous borders. Proper image calibration based upon grayscale measurements (not screen display) is presumed and is a critical component of the scanning process. These guidelines are for materials not to exceed 11" x 14".

The goals of your digitization project will determine what hardware and software are needed to successfully complete the project. Scanning, image manipulation, attaching text information, indexing, image display and long-term storage can require different equipment and user expertise. What materials are to be scanned and how those images are to be used will impact equipment choices. These selection guidelines are intended as general recommendations. Digitization is an area that is evolving and we strongly recommend that you research the current literature in print and online for the latest developments before purchasing any equipment.

Accession/Accessioning:
The formal and legal documentation of an incoming repository transaction, including a gift, purchase, exchange, transfer, or field collection. Also includes establishment of legal title and/or custody.

Accession file:
File that contains the documentation for each incoming repository transaction, including all legal records. Often includes the documentation of a deaccession.

Accession number:
A unique number assigned to a collection or, in some cases, an object for purposes of identification not description (Buck and Gilmore 1998; Griset and Kodack 1999).

Accession register:
System, either in manual/paper form and/or electronic form, used by repositories to keep track of all accessions.

Acetone:
A colorless, highly flammable liquid that is soluble in water. Commonly used as a solvent for adhesives.

Acid-free:
"A material that has a pH of 7.0 or higher (an alkaline), since acids can weaken cellulose in paper, cloth, and board and lead to embrittlement" (Griset and Kodack 1999:155).

Acquisition/Acquisitioning:
A process to obtain custody of an object, document, or collection that involves physical transfer.

Acryloid B72:
Acrylic resin used as a consolidant, as a barrier material or base coat to label objects, and as an adhesive.

Active stabilization:
Interventive treatment action taken to increase the stability or durability of an object.

Appraisal:
The process of determining the monetary value of an item.

Archives:
"(1) The permanently valuable non-current records of an organization, with their original order and provenance intact, maintained by the original organization. (2) The organization that created and holds the records. (3) The physical building/room in which the records are held." (NPS 1996:D60).

Archival quality:
"Materials that have been manufactured of inert materials specifically designed to extend the life of artifacts and records by protecting them from agents of deterioration" (Griset and Kodack 1999:156).

Archivist:
Person professionally educated, trained, and engaged in the administration and management of archival and manuscript collections.

Assessment, collections:
The process of evaluating a collection for the purpose of documenting its condition, relating it to the mission and goals of the repository, and determining courses of action regarding its care and management.

Associated records:
"Original records (or copies thereof) that are prepared, assembled and document efforts to locate, evaluate, record, study, preserve or recover a prehistoric or historic resource" (36 CFR 79.4(a)(2)).

Backing:
Material used to support fragile objects, usually attached by adhesives. Backing may be made of either flexible or rigid materials, but should always be able to expand and contract in a similar manner as the object it supports. It should also be reversible.

Bequest:
Transfer of property to an institution under the terms of a deceased person's will.

Buffer:
"A substance containing both a weak acid and its conjugal base, used to restrain the acid migration of a material. Acid-free paper products are often buffered" (Buck and Gilmore 1998:360).

Catalog:
A listing of objects or groups of associated records with descriptive details, including provenience information, that is arranged systematically.

Cellulose nitrate film
"A flexible film base used for motion picture film and photographic negatives between about 1890 and 1955. This film base self-destructs over time going through five stages of deterioration. The film should be handled with gloves, foldered in buffered sleeves, boxed, placed in ziplock bags and removed to off-site (non-museum storage) cold storage in a freezer." (NPS 1996:D60).

Collection:
"Material remains that are excavated or removed during a survey, excavation or other study of a prehistoric or historic resource, and associated records that are prepared or assembled in connection with the survey, excavation or other study" (36 CFR 79.4(a)).

Collecting plan:
Term used by repositories, it is a document, usually part of a repository's acquisition policy, that specifically details what the repository is going to collect in order to fulfill its mission, goals, and scope of collections.

Collecting strategy:
A plan that details what is going to be collected during archeological fieldwork. Can include details on artifact class/type, number, location, and sampling.

Collections management:
The management and care of collections with concern for their long term physical well being and safety. Includes issues of conservation, access and use, and inventory, as well as management of the overall composition of the collection(s) in relation to the repository's mission and goals.

Collections manager:
A trained professional who is responsible for any and all aspects of collections care. Specific responsibilities vary by institution, but can include day-to-day care of and access to collections, cataloging, and information management.

Condition report:
An accurate, descriptive report of an object's or document's state of preservation at a moment in time. Assists in planning for conservation treatment.

Conservation:
Measures taken to prolong the life of an object or document and its physical, historic, and scientific integrity as long as possible in its original form. May involve chemical stabilization or physical strengthening. Treatments should be fully tested, reviewed, and recorded by professional conservators.

Conservator:
A person trained in the theoretical and practical aspects of preventive conservation and in performing treatments to prolong the lives of objects and documents. Often specializes in a particular class of objects or materials.

Consolidant:
A chemical used to strengthen the structural material of an object.

Copyright:
Legal recognition of special intellectual property rights, distinct from the right of possession, that a creator may have for their work. Copyright exists for original works in tangible media and covers the rights to reproduce, adapt, distribute, perform, or display the work.

Corrosion:
An electrochemical process involving gradual destruction of an object, usually metals, through change in the object's material(s).

Courier:
An individual, usually a representative of an object or document owner or a repository, who travels with an item to ensure its proper care and safe arrival at a venue.

Crazing:
A fine mesh of minute cracks on an object's surface. Crazing is most often seen on ceramic glazes and some types of glass.

Crizzling:
Small scale, minute cracking of a material (similar to crazing). In glass, it results from the leaching out of alkalis.

Cultural resources:
Materials or remains, including historic and archaeological objects, that compose a culture's non-renewable heritage. Also includes ethnographic objects, historic and prehistoric buildings, structures, sites, and landscapes.

Culling:
The process of selecting and removing objects from a group. Usually entails the rejection of items with no scientific or historical value to the group.

Cultural affiliation:
As defined under NAGPRA, cultural affiliation is "a relationship of shared group identity which can be reasonably traced historically or prehistorically between a present day Indian tribe or Native Hawaiian organization and an identifiable earlier group" (25 U.S.C 3001.2(3)).

Cultural patrimony (objects of):
As defined under NAGPRA, "an object having ongoing historical, traditional, or cultural importance central to the American Indian group or culture itself, rather than property owned by an individual Native American, and which, therefore, cannot be alienated, appropriated, or conveyed by any individual regardless of whether or not the individual is a member of the Indian tribe or Native Hawaiian organization and such object shall have been considered inalienable by such Native American group at the time the object was separated from such group. (25 U.S.C 3001.2(3)(D)).

Curation:
The process of "managing and preserving a collection according to professional museum and archival practices" (36 CFR 79.4(b)).

Curation agreement:
Document/contract between two parties (one usually a repository) detailing the curation of a collection(s). It includes details on the state of the collection when given to the repository, work to be done at the repository, responsibilities to the collection for both parties, costs, ownership, and issues/details on access and use of the collection.

Curator:
A trained professional who is usually responsible for the care, exhibition, research, and enhancement of repository collections. Specific duties vary between repositories.

Deaccession:
The legal, permanent removal of an object, document, specimen, or collection from a repository. Requires full documentation of the process.

Dead storage:
Method for storing objects that are not actively used. It usually involves less expensive, off-site facilities where collections are relatively inaccessible.

Deed of Gift:
A contract that transfers ownership from one person or institution to another. Should include any conditions placed on the gift, although these are generally discouraged by the receiving repository.

Delamination:
The lateral separation of a surface into constituent layers.

Derivative work:
Variant or alternative version of an original piece of work, such as posters, postcards, T-shirts, or artwork using original photographs, graphic designs, maps, or the like.

Destructive analysis:
General term for any type of scientific analysis that destroys or alters the sample during the process. In archeology, destructive analysis techniques include thin-section analysis, DNA analysis, C14 dating, thermoluminescence dating, and metallography.

Devitrification:
A change in the state of glass from a vitreous to a crystalline condition. It then loses its glassy luster and transparency.

Disposal:
The act of physically removing an object from a repository's collection.

Disposition:
Actions taken to records deemed to not be current after appraisal. Actions include transfer to a records center for temporary storage, transfer to an archival agency, donation to an eligible repository, reproduction on microfilm, and destruction.

Disposition schedule:
A policy document that directs how long a document (or type of document) is retained by an institution and whether it is permanently retained or may be discarded.

Dry cleaning:
A technique to clean and remove contaminants off of documents by gently brushing off surface grime and dirt by using "Gummi" or "Art Gum" erasers or by using archival "groomsticks" to manually remove mold and other spores.

Ecofacts:
Non-artifactual remains and organics that have cultural relevance. Includes faunal or floral remains and soil samples. (See also non-cultural artifacts or materials.)

Efflorescence:
The outward migration and precipitation of salts on the surface from within a porous material.

Environmental Assessment (EA):
A document related to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) prepared by a Federal agency. Used for compliance with NEPA when an Environmental Impact Statement is not necessary, i.e., there is no significant impact.

Environmental Impact Statement (EIS):
A detailed statement prepared under compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act, which outlines the environmental impact of actions taken by a federal agency, as well as options for limiting or negating that impact.

Ethafoam®:
Product name for a polyethylene foam that is produced in sheets. Used for shelf liners in storage and support of objects. Can be carved into specific shapes, which makes it useful for supporting odd-shaped objects.

Facility report:
Report prepared by a repository that outlines its facilities, environmental controls and monitoring, and collections management procedures. Lending institutions often use these reports to decide whether a borrowing institution is able to properly care for and manage loaned objects. The standard form can be obtained from the American Association of Museums.

Finding aid:
"(1) A broader term for any format of textual or electronic tool that assists researchers in locating or using archival and manuscript collections. Basic finding aids include guides (for example, repository, collection, and subject guides), descriptive inventories, accession registers, card catalogs, special lists (for example, shelf and box lists), indexes, and (for machine-readable records) software documentation. (2) The file guides, indexes, registers, and filing system aids produced by the records creator, usually referred to as "control records" or "contemporaneous finding aids." (3) The specific type of descriptive tool described [in the text above]." (NPS 1996:D61).

Flotation:
A method of obtaining seeds, small bones, and other organic materials from soils or sediments using water or other liquids. May be performed in the field or laboratory.

Funerary objects:
Items that, as part of the death rite or ceremony of a culture, are reasonably believed to have been placed intentionally with or near individual human remains at the time of death or later. Used in NAGPRA.

Genre:
"Refers to the document's style, content, and form, including the document's purpose (advertisements, presentation album), the document's viewpoint (panoramic view), broad topical category (landscape, still life, portrait, or street scene), method of representation (abstract, figurative), circumstances of creation (amateur works, student works), or function (dance cards, cigarette cards, death certificates)" (NPS 1996:D61).

Geographic Information System (GIS):
Computer system capable of assembling, storing, manipulating, and displaying geographically referenced information (data identified according to its location). GIS is often used in archeology for making maps that plot artifact distribution over a site or sites over a geographic area. Requires extensive data gathering and sophisticated software.

Gray literature:
Unpublished documentation that is printed in limited numbers and is rarely cataloged in libraries. For archeology, it is mainly technical reports of archeological investigations that are most often associated with cultural resources management assessment and fieldwork. Thus, it is relatively inaccessible to researchers, other archeologists, and the public.

Historic preservation:
Management and preservation of buildings, sites, structures, objects, and landscapes that have historical or cultural significance.

Humectant:
A hygroscopic chemical that bonds to organic materials, thereby blocking the sites in the material that normally absorb and lose water. When the relative humidity (RH) drops, water is "taken" by the object from the humectant. Common humectants are glycerol and sorbitol.

Humidification:
Application of small amounts of moisture in an enclosed humidification chamber to relax paper fibers so that a document can be gently unrolled or unfolded and then flattened.

Hygrothermograph:
Device used to measure and record relative humidity (RH) and temperature levels in one area over a continuous period. Depending on the machine, it can record levels for one day, one week, or one month.

Information Management:
The development and maintenance of integrated information systems and the optimization of information flow and access. In repositories, this most often applies to the systems (manual or computerized) that hold collections information. This may include accession, catalog, and/or inventory records.

In perpetuity:
Literally means continuing forever. Used in reference to the curation of material remains and documents by a repository for the entire length of an item's life.

In situ:
In the natural or original position/place. In archeology, it references the original burial context or provenience of an object.

Integrated Pest Management:
The selection, integration, and implementation of a variety of approaches to prevent and solve pest problems in the most efficient and ecologically sound manner. A decision-making process that helps one decide if a treatment is necessary and appropriate, where the treatment should be applied, and what strategies should be integrated for immediate and long-term results.

Intellectual rights/ Intellectual property rights:
Non-physical (intangible) rights to an object or record that exist independently from ownership of the physical item. They include copyrights, images, and rights to use.

Intervention/Interventive materials:
Materials, such as consolidants, fumigants, acids, and other chemicals, used for the treatment of objects and records, including the addition of preservatives or the removal of agents of deterioration.

Inventory:
An itemized listing of objects in a repository. It may also be the process of physically locating objects through several different types of inventory: complete, sectional, and spot.

Japanese paper:
Non-technical term for a type of archival quality, non-wood pulp paper that is often used in museum applications.

Lineal descendant:
Individual tracing his or her ancestry directly and without interruption through the traditional kinship system of his/her group to a known individual. Used in compliance with NAGPRA, the lineal descendant has priority claim over human remains or funerary/sacred objects of his/her direct ancestor.

Loan:
Delivery of personal or institutional property by one person or institution to another in trust for a specific purpose. This is done with the understanding that when that purpose is accomplished the property is returned to the owner.

Loan fee:
A fee charged of a borrowing institution by a lending institution for a loan. It is usually a charge in addition to the actual costs (conservation, packing, shipping, etc.) of handling a loan.

Lossy compression:"...any process for compressing an image file that causes the file, once uncompressed to differ from the original appearance of the image file. Many lossy compression file formats look very similar to the uncompressed file, as the information that is discarded is often not easy to identify visually" (Vogt O'Connor 1999:49).

Lot:
A group of artifacts identified by provenience, material, and/or object name. Provenience should be as specific as is recorded by the archeologist. Material may not be mixed, such as glass and ceramics. Object name may be used to separate out different types of objects of the same material from the same provenience (e.g., flakes, projectile points).

Lux:
Lumens per square meter. Lux is a measure for visible light.

Machine-readable records:
Archives and records with informational content that is usually in code and is most efficiently read with the aid of a machine. Coded information is retrievable only by a machine. If not coded, the information may be read without the assistance of a machine. For example, microformat is a machine-readable record yet may be read without a machine.

Material remains:
"Artifacts, objects, specimens and other physical evidence that are excavated or removed in connection with efforts to locate, evaluate, document, study, preserve or recover a prehistoric or historic resource" (36 CFR 79.4(a)(1)).

Memorandum of Agreement (MOA):
Document prepared under Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act. A MOA details an agreement between parties (such as the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation and a federal agency) on what may be done to resolve any adverse effects of an action on the cultural environment.

Metadata:
"Refers to documentation about data, such as descriptions of electronic files that effectively tell you the format, structure, contents, and authority of the materials. Metadata standards, such as the Dublin Core and the Encoded Archival Description Standards, are developed and being adopted or adapted." (Vogt O'Connor 1999:49).

Microform:
"Microforms are photographic images that are 20 to 150 times smaller than the original" (Balough 1993:17). It is generally produced on film that has a life expectancy of 500 years, commonly called microfilm.

Mission Statement:
Also called a "statement of purpose", a document drawn up by a repository to succinctly outline its purpose, current scope and uses of its collections, and immediate goals.

Museum:
"…a permanent, nonprofit organization, essentially educational and often aesthetic in purpose, which, utilizing professional staff, acquires tangible objects, interprets them, cares for them, and exhibits them to the public on a regular basis." (Malaro 1994:81).

Mylar®:
Trade name (DuPont) for a plastic polyethylene terephthalate (polyester) sheet, commonly used for mapping field projects. Mylar is characterized by its transparency, colorlessness, high tensile strength, and chemical stability.

National Historic Landmarks Program:
Authorized under the Historic Sites Act of 1935, it coordinates, manages, and preserves historic and archeological sites that have been designated by the Secretary of the Interior to have national significance and illustrate the nation's heritage.

National Register of Historic Places:
List of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects determined to be of historic, cultural, architectural, archeological, or engineering significance at the national, state, or local level. The name also applies to the NPS staff unit that processes and manages the list and manages the extensive archives of property records in the Register.

Non-cultural artifacts or materials:
General term applied to items collected at archeological sites that are natural (not man-made), but still have cultural or archeological significance. Includes soil samples, shell, and floral remains. (See also Ecofacts)

Original order:
"The functional filing arrangement imposed on a document collection by its creator. The original order of collections can provide information not found elsewhere, such as when the creator received a communication, who reviewed a document, or what the sequence of an administrative activity was. Original order should be preserved or reconstructed in a collection as it allows for rapid arrangement, accurate contextual research, and additional insight into the record creator's methods and activities. If a collection has no order because of mismanagement or disaster, a decision to impose an order may be made only by an experienced archivist." (NPS 1996:D63).

Pest management:
See Integrated Pest Management.

pH level /pH scale:
A logarithmic measure of the acidity or alkalinity of material. The pH scale goes from 0 to 14 with each number indicating a ten-fold increase or decrease from the next number. Neutral is pH 7. Numbers below neutral indicate acidity. Numbers above neutral indicate alkalinity.

Polyethylene PE):
A chemically stable, flexible, transparent or translucent plastic. May be found in the form of film, sheets, foam, and rods. It is widely used for making archival quality plastic bags and sleeves.

Polymer:
A chemical compound or mixture of compounds (like or unlike) formed of repeating structural units. All plastics are polymers.

Polypropylene:
Similar to polyethylene only stiffer and more heat resistant. Commonly used to make sleeves for slides or film or small containers.

Polyurethane:
An unstable polymer that should not be used for storage or in repositories. Tends to off-gas, which can create chemical reactions on or in objects.

Polyvinyl Acetate (PA) emulsion:
A colorless, transparent polymer of vinyl acetate upon drying that is used in adhesives.

Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC):
A plastic polymer. Not as chemically stable as other plastics because it may emit hydrochloric acid as it deteriorates. Its use for preservation is limited for that reason.

Processing, initial:
A series of steps undertaken on an archeological collection prior to its deposit for long-term curation, often including cleaning, labeling, packing, and cataloging.

Project design:
See Research design.

Provenance:
The background and history of ownership for an object or records. Generally used for works of art, historical objects, and archival records.

Provenience:
In archeology, it is the specific geographic or spatial location (either in two-dimensional or three-dimensional space) where an object was found.

Range of variation:
In archeology, it is the extent of differences that exists between items in an artifact class. For artifacts, variation can exist and be measured for variables such as time period, size, style, material, and technology.

Records:
"(1) All information fixed in a tangible (textual, electronic, audiovisual, or visual) form that was created by an organization as part of its daily business. (2) Two or more data fields that are grouped as a unit in machine-readable records." (NPS 1996:D:64).

"Federal records are defined as all books, papers, maps, photographs, machine readable materials, or other documentary materials, regardless of physical form or characteristics, made or received by an agency of the United States Government under Federal law or in connection with the transaction of public business and preserved or appropriate for preservation by that agency or its legitimate successor as evidence of the organization, functions, policies, decisions, procedures, operations, or other activities of the Government or because of the informational value of data in them." (36 CFR 1222.12).

Records management:
The process involved in determining the status, value, and disposition of administrative records throughout their lifetime (for example, active or inactive). Also involves scheduling records for their ultimate disposition.

Reemay®:
Trade name for a nonwoven, spunbonded polyester product that is used in museum applications for labeling, tags, and packaging.

Reformatting:
Preservation duplication of original archival materials through the use of long-lived copy technology such as silver halide microfilms or large format digital files and computer output microfilms (NPS 1996:D64).

Registrar:
An individual responsible for the development and implementation of procedures and policies affecting the acquisition, management, and disposition of collections. A registrar also usually maintains all collection documentation, including inventory and loans. Specific duties vary between institutions.

Rehabilitation:
To restore to a former state or good condition. In conservation, this applies to the restoration of deteriorated objects. It can also refer to the upgrade of an entire collection.

Relative humidity (RH):
The measure of moisture in the air in relation to the saturation point of the air at its current temperature. RH is measured as a percentage of the absolute humidity divided by the saturation humidity.

Religious use:
As cited in NAGPRA, "...use in religious rituals or spiritual activities. Religious remains generally are of interest to medicine men and women, and other religious practitioners and persons from Indian tribes, Alaskan Native corporations, Native Hawaiians, and other indigenous and immigrant ethnic, social and religious groups that have aboriginal or historic ties to the lands from which the remains are recovered, and have traditionally used the remains or class of remains in religious rituals or spiritual activities." (36 CFR 79.10(c)).

Repatriation:
To return or restore the control of an object or collection to the country of origin or rightful owner. Used to describe the return of items to lineal descendants or culturally affiliated tribes under NAGPRA.

Repository:
"A facility such as a museum, archeological center, laboratory or storage facility that is managed by a university, college, museum, or other educational or scientific institution, a federal, state, or local government agency, or Indian tribe that can provide professional, systematic, and accountable curatorial services on a long-term basis." (36 CFR 79, Section 79.4(j)).

Research design:
A systematic plan for a research project. Usually includes formulating a strategy to resolve a research question(s). It also details the methods for collecting, recording, processing, and analyzing the recovered data in the field and laboratory.

Risk management:
The planning and use of available resources to minimize overall risk to collections. Involves identifying risks, identifying strategies to eliminate or manage risks, and setting priorities for risk elimination and management. In repositories, this involves measures for security, fire control, pests, and disaster planning.

Sacred objects:
Specific ceremonial objects which are needed by traditional religious leaders for the practice of traditional religions by their present-day adherents. An important component of NAGPRA for American Indians, Native Hawaiians, and Native Alaskans.

Sampling:
A process of selecting a representative part of a population for the purpose of determining parameters or characteristics of the whole population. The selection process may be based on a mathematical probability theory, a regularized pattern, or existing knowledge of data patterning.

Scope of Collections:
A repository planning document that details the extent of its collections, including what it may acquire in the future to fulfill its mission.

Security copy:
"Duplicate copy of original documentation that is on archival paper and is stored in a separate location from the original" (Griset and Kodack 1998:158).

Series:
"A group of documents arranged or maintained as a unit within a file system because of their shared circumstances of creation, receipt, or use. An example of a list of series would be: 1) incoming correspondence, 2) outgoing correspondence, 3) bills and check receipts, 4) photographs, and 5) legal documents." (NPS 1996:D64).

Silica gel:
A granular substance which has high moisture absorbing and emitting properties. It is often used as a moisture stabilizer in packing, storing, and exhibiting items that are sensitive to humidity.

Soil samples:
A quantity of dirt, site matrix, or sediments collected for physical or chemical analysis.

Soluble salt:
Type of salt (including chlorides, nitrates, and sulfates) that is readily soluble in water. Can be absorbed by any porous material buried in soil that contains these salts. When evaporation occurs, salts crystallize on or near an object's surface and can lead to its destruction.

Solvent:
A substance capable of dissolving another substance. Solvents are often liquids and tend to be volatile. Different solvents are needed for dissolving different substances, depending on chemical composition. A common solvent is acetone.

Spalling:
Delaminating or breaking off into chips and pieces. Spalling is often caused in archeological materials by subflorescence.

State Historic Preservation Officer (SHPO):
"The state official, designated by the governor, to carry out the functions ascribed to the SHPO under the National Historic Preservation Act. SHPOs receive and administer matching grants from NPS to support their work and pass through to others. They identify historic properties and nominate them to the National Register. They maintain inventories, do plans, and consult with others about historic preservation." (King 1998:267).

Study or type collection:
A collection of archeological items that represents a certain class of objects, usually demonstrating the typical or the range of variation. It may be compiled for the purpose of comparison in order to advance scholarly research.

Teflon monofilament:
Type of archival quality string that is often used to attach tags to objects because of its non-abrasive, non-damaging qualities.

Thermoplastic acrylic:
A polymer that is applied as a liquid and then hardens or sets. They are resoluble in an appropriate solvent and soften upon heating.

Thermosetting resin:
Resins that change (irreversibly) under heat from a fusible, soluble material into one that is infusible and insoluble through the formation of a covalently crosslinked, thermally stable network.

Type collection:
See Study collection.

Ultraviolet (UV) rays:
Light rays, not visible to the human eye, that can cause permanent damage through fast color degradation, structural weakening, and embrittlement of objects. UV rays are found in natural sunlight and in some artificial light sources (such as fluorescent lamps).

Warping:
Bending or twisting of a material. Warping is a destructive process that is common to some archeological materials when they undergo wide fluctuations of relative humidity and temperature.