Wednesday, April 30, 2008

April 2008 Update

Data Cleaning & Uploading
With two conferences and an audit it was a slow month for data cleaning. That said, I managed to get another 1100 records cleaned from two sites. The amount of time that it takes to clean a database is contingent on a few things, including the number of records, amount of information in each entry, and formating of the entries.
CHIN is very pleased with the continuous influx of records to Artefacts Canada, even though it means we're making a lot of work for them. So let's keep the records flowing, and upload everything as soon as possible.

Database Upgrades
Richard has finally completed the upgrades to the Collections Database and we are both double-checking to make sure that there aren't any hiccups in the program. You will now be able to work in either an archival or collections view, and each contain more fields & options to make the database work better for you. One of the changes that people have been asking for is the addition of multiple image fields. The new version will be able to hold four images of the artifact, all of which will show on the Images page as thumbnails. So feel free to take a front and back view, or get a close-up of some detailing or maker's marks.

Manufacturer’s Database

As CHIN revamps its server and website, they are working on incorporating the Manufacturer’s database into the new system. This means that we could see the database online by October. While the current online content obviously receives priority during this process, the Manager of Content & Capacity Building is optimistic that the database will be online by the end of this year.
Thank you to everyone who lent us binders and sent information about the manufacturers and artisans from their area. We are very excited to be the first province to create a database of this kind.


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