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Cross-media advice
Cross-media: Managing your digital resources
This section covers common issues in organising and managing a sustainable cross-media (moving images, audio or still images) collection. These papers are aimed at staff who will provide support for managing digital collections but also provide valuable advice to small collection owners so they can manage their digital assets.
An Introduction to Digital Preservation
Digital preservation aims to ensure that a digital collection remains usable, regardless of the inevitable changes in technology the future will bring. Without the appropriate preservation methods in place a digital collection can easily become inaccessible and so useless in just a few years. This paper discusses the preservation of digital output and the associated metadata.
Read full advice document...An Introduction to Metadata
This is the first in a series of advice documents about metadata. In general the documents are aimed at those developing managed and sharable digital collections and are of use to those creating still image, moving image or audio collections. This first document defines metadata and introduces some of the key themes and issues that are dealt with in more depth later on.
Read full advice document...Asset Management: Papermule DAM & Workflow Engine
JISC Digital Media has surveyed a range of image management software developers to gather specific information about their systems. These are the responses from Papermule DAM & Workflow Engine.
Read full advice document...Audiovisual Copyright: Frequently Asked Questions
By reviewing copyright enquiries which have reached us via our helpdesk, we've collated answers to some of the most common. These are presented here as an FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions).
Read full advice document...Choosing a File Name
File naming is a vital first step for those beginning to digitise. This document examines planning and using an effective file naming system when managing digital files. This paper highlights the advantages of using the 8.3 convention and looks at some options when naming derivative, surrogate files.
Read full advice document...Controlling your Language: a Directory of Metadata Vocabularies
This directory provides details of more than 70 vocabulary sources. It categorises the various types of vocabularies available to us as Thesauri, Subject headings, Authority lists and Classification schemes. Thesauri, subject headings and word lists more generally, are used primarily in aiding retrieval, whereas Classification schemes help us to organise resources, and Authority Lists help us to standardise the expression of values used in our metadata, like, for example, the way we enter names and dates. Although there are overlaps, broadly speaking each serves a different purpose in helping to control the terminology used in our schemas and in aiding the search and retrieval of our resources.
Read full advice document...Copyright: An Overview
Copyright and other intellectual property rights are central to the development, use and sustainability of digital collections. This advice document provides a broad overview of copyright.
Read full advice document...Delicious Bookmark Service
This advice document brings to your attention the free online bookmark service Delicious. Its ability to allow you to manage bookmarks by saving, searching and sharing will be of interest to anybody who has to manage many bookmarks for individuals or groups. It has applications of use for teaching and learning which will be described below.
Read full advice document...Establishing a Digital Preservation Policy
This paper looks at the high-level challenges associated with establishing a digital preservation policy. It is intended to be of use to readers responsible for managing digital media collections. For hands-on digital preservation advice see the document An Introduction to Digital Preservation.
Read full advice document...File Formats and Compression
This document looks at the theory of file formats and the common methods of data compression.
Read full advice document...Graphical User Interface Design: Developing Usable and Accessible Collections
This paper looks at the development of a graphical user interface (GUI) for a digital collection. It takes a general view of facilitating effective access to a digital resource and then examines more closely the issues of usability and then accessibility. It is intended to be of use to collection managers wishing to grant access to a digital resource.
Read full advice document...Links to Digital Media and Digital Preservation Organisations
The list below survey a selection of audiovisual and digital preservation related organisations and provides links to their websites.
Read full advice document...Metadata Standards and Interoperability
This advice document aims to provide a comprehensive look at the various choices the developer of multimedia collections has in terms of metadata standards and the principles behind using them. It attempts to provide a synopsis of general metadata trends, a) in usage for audio, moving and still image format types; b) in specific areas of practice such as museums, archives, libraries and education; and, c) in various activities and tasks such as preservation, interoperability and resource discovery. For an overview of the whole series of papers, and an introduction to the metadata issues discussed here, please see An Introduction to Metadata.
Read full advice document...Overview of JISC Digital Media Materials for those involved in Business and Community Engagement
This guide provides an overview of the JISC Digital Media website, highlighting materials we think may be of particular use to HE/FE staff involved in business or community engagement (BCE).
Read full advice document...Putting Things in Order: a Directory of Metadata Schemas and Related Standards
This directory provides a list of formal metadata schemas and related standards giving brief descriptions and links to further information. It complements JISC Digital Media's series of advice documents on metadata, which the reader is strongly advised to read alongside this resource.
Read full advice document...Sustainability of Digital Collections
Once funding for a digitisation project comes to an end, how will you ensure the long term sustainability of your newly-created collection? This is a fundamental question that needs to be addressed at the outset of the project. This document looks at different approaches to sustainability and discusses the factors you need to take into consideration when planning for sustainability. We will highlight the practical steps a project can take and examine various options for financing the ongoing maintenance and availability of the collection beyond the life of the project.
Read full advice document...Systems for Managing Digital Media Collections
Everyone's collection and context is unique, so your choice of a system (or systems) for managing your digital media will require a careful assessment of your needs and resources and an evaluation of the available options. This paper provides an overview of a number of different approaches to media management: from some very cheap and 'low-tech' approaches to much more complex and specialised solutions.
Read full advice document...Use of VLEs with Digital Media
This advice document gives you an overview of the things to consider when using digital media in your Virtual Learning Environment (VLE).
Read full advice document...Using Digital Media in Moodle
This advice document is intended to provide an understanding of how digital media can be used in the Moodle VLE to support teaching and learning. We will be referring to the term digital media as: still images, moving image and audio. Each may be used in conjunction with written learning material.
Read full advice document...Using Digital Media with Blackboard
This advice document aims to introduce the Blackboard virtual learning environment (VLE) and how you can use digital media to support your Blackboard course design, content, and delivery. We will be referring to the term digital media as: still images, moving image and audio. Each may be used in conjunction with written learning material.
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