Webwise Reprise: Live Online Webinars

The C2C Online Community was pleased to present WebWise Reprise—two online events based on the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) WebWise 2012 conference. Recordings of Sharing Public History Work: Crowdsourcing Data and Oral History in the Digital Age are now available.

Since 2000, the WebWise conference has brought together representatives of museums, libraries, archives, systems science, education, and other fields interested in the future of high-quality online content for inquiry and learning. This annual conference highlights recent research and innovations in digital technology, explores their potential impact on library and museum services, and promotes effective museum and library practices in the digital environment. It also provides recipients of IMLS technology-based grants an opportunity to showcase their exemplary projects. This year’s conference, WebWise 2012: Tradition and Innovation, was held in Baltimore, Maryland from February 29-March 2. Recordings of all the WebWise presentations are available here.

Moderated by Heritage Preservation Vice President Kristen Laise, both WebWise Reprise sessions included video from the WebWise 2012 conference, presentations by the featured speakers, and ample time for audience questions. Below, are summaries of each 90-minute session with links to more information.

Sharing Public History Work: Crowdsourcing Data
Public historians and librarians have long relied on their local communities for volunteers to assist paid staff as docents and interpreters, and as collections and reference assistants. More recently, a variety of collaborative online tools have made it possible for volunteers from a larger pool to assist museums and libraries to share in content work through crowdsourcing. Sharon Leon, Director of Public Projects at the Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media at George Mason University, began the session by providing an introductory presentation about crowdsourcing. Participants then watched the WebWise presentation of Ben Brumfield, Software Engineer at FromThePage Open-Source Transcription Software. Ben discussed valuable lessons learned from using crowdsourcing to index small collections. Ben then gave a live tour of his Web site. Both speakers then took questions. Click here to view a recording of this event.

Oral History in the Digital Age
The sound of voices from the past can bring history to life in a powerful way for the 21st-century learner. This Webinar included the WebWise presentation of Dean Rehberger, Director of MATRIX: the Center for Humane Art, Letters, and Social Science Online at Michigan State University. In the presentation, Dean described MATRIX’s newest Web site Oral History in the Digital Age. Dean then provided a tour of the site, which includes best practices on issues about collecting, curating, and disseminating oral histories and narratives using current technology. Dean was followed by Doug Boyd, Director of the Louie B. Nunn Center for Oral History at the University of Kentucky Libraries, who presented the Oral History Metadata Synchronizer (OHMS)—a new open-source program that can help institutions index their oral history collections more efficiently and effectively. The presentations were followed by a lively question and answer session with the audience. Click here to view a recording of this event.