LIBR 284-11
Seminar in Archives and Records Management: (Digitization and Digital Preservation)
Spring 2010 Greensheet

Robert H. McDonald, Instructor
Email (Please put "LIBR 284" in subject field when contacting me.)
Phone (Cell): (812) 558-0231 (preferred no and for SMS Texting)
Phone (Office): (812) 856-4834
(I live in Bloomington, IN and am on Eastern Time. Please no calls after 7pm PST / 10pm EST)
Other contact points: Google IM/GTalk (robert@rmcdonald.info) Skype: rhmcdonald
(If you see my online presence in Google or Skype, you are welcome to contact me.)
Office Hours: I will have office hours on Wed via Angel/UStream (2-3 pm PST)

Textbooks and Readings | Course Requirements

ANGEL Information: I will send the access code for the Angel site via the MySJSU messaging system to those enrolled in the course on Friday, 22 January. Please enroll in the course by Monday, 25 January.

Course Description

This course will provide an introduction to the digitization of archival, library, and museum materials, as well as an introduction to the digital preservation of the resulting digital objects. Students will learn about using digital technologies to provide better access to and sometimes to preserve text, images, sound, and video. [Please note: the majority of the course will focus on the digitization of text and image because of the nature of this class and equipment requirements.] Particular topics to be explored in depth include: mass digitization versus local digitization efforts, selection for digitization, legal and copyright issues, digitization requirements for text and images, metadata, and technology issues. The course will provide a broad foundation of the principles, processes and standards guiding the digitization of cultural heritage materials.

Course Prerequisites: LIBR 200, 202, 204 required. Other prerequisites may be added depending on content.

Course Objectives

Student Learning Outcomes
At the completion of this class, students will:

1. Understand the fundamental differences between digitization and digital preservation;
2. Understand the issues of quality, speed, production, and accessibility related to mass digitization projects versus local digitization projects;
3. Acquire the skills to select materials for digitization and provide sound justification for their decisions;
4. Be able to select and apply appropriate standards and good practices depending upon the type of material and the objective of a particular digitization project;
5. Understand the role and types of metadata used to describe, manage, and provide access to digital materials;
6. Obtain an understanding of the technology issues surrounding digitization, including appropriate conversion devices, delivery systems, and digital preservation;
7. Have the skills to plan and manage a digitization project from design through delivery;
8. Have experience creating a digital collection: including budgeting, selection, digitization, metadata creation, use of CONTENTdm (an industry-leading digital collection management tool), and digital preservation concerns.

LIBR 284 supports the following MLIS Core Competencies:

• use the basic concepts and principles related to the creation, evaluation, selection, acquisition, preservation and organization of specific items or collections of information
• understand the system of standards and methods used to control and create information structures and apply basic principles involved in the organization and representation of knowledge;
• demonstrate proficiency in the use of current information and communication technologies, and other related technologies, as they affect the resources and uses of libraries and other types of information providing entities;
• use service concepts, principles and techniques that facilitate information access, relevance, and accuracy for individuals or groups of users; and
• evaluate programs and services on specified criteria.

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Course Requirements

Class Virtual Meetings
There will be at least four scheduled class meetings online via the Elluminate system. The first required date will be Feb 5 at 2pm PST. Other Dates will be determined at the beginning of the course.

Computer Access
Angel will be the venue for online lectures, class discussion, and assignments. You must have regular access to a computer to access course materials and online lectures. At least two assignments will involve working with image files. For this reason, you should have access to a computer with a reasonable network connection speed to download and complete the assignments.

Assignment Submission
This is a "paperless" class. Please submit all assignments via Angel. Naming conventions for files will be discussed during the first week of the class, but must always include your last name.

Assignments must be word processed in 12 pt. Times Roman and utilize a one-inch margin all around. If you plan to utilize a word processing program other than Microsoft Word, please check with the instructor to discuss the file format.

Late assignments will not be accepted unless by prior consent of the instructor. If you have an illness or a family tragedy please contact the instructor.

Course Calendar

• Weeks 1-2
  Why Digitize? - Mass Digitization versus Local Imaging Projects/Digital Imaging: Key Concepts and Vocabulary
• Week 3
  Project Planning & Management/Funding Sources & Grant Writing
• Week 4
  Selecting Materials for Digitization
• Week 5
  Copyright Law & Rights Management
• Weeks 6-8
  The Technical Stuff:
  • Benchmarking, Defining Requirements, Quality Control
  • Digitization of Textual Resources, OCR, and Encoding
  • Digitization of Photographic Images
  • File naming
• Week 9
  Metadata for Discovery, Management, and Preservation
• Week 10
  Image Management & Delivery Systems
• Week 11-12
  Audio & Video Digitization
• Weeks 13-14
  Sustainability & Digital Preservation
• Week 15
  Project Evaluation; Evaluating Costs; Working with Vendors
  

Course Grading
Assignments and Grading
Grading will be based on a total accumulation of 100 possible points, distributed as follows:

• Copyright Assignment 10 points
• Benchmarking Assignment 10 points
• Case Study 25 points
• Online collection 25 points
• Participation (Angel discussion forums) 30 points

Extra credit options, may be available

Textbooks and Readings

Required Texts & Readings
There is no required textbook for this course. Instead, a majority of the readings are available for free on the web and URLs will be provided on the Angel course and in the syllabus. Occasionally, you will need to obtain readings from King Library or from other sources ‐‐ this will be made clear on Angel and in the syllabus. In some cases, you will need to “view” websites, “do” an online activity, or “watch” videos in addition to completing readings.

In all cases, readings, website viewings, online activities, and videos should be completed in advance of the class discussions scheduled on those topics.

Recommended Reading
I have included two texts that I think would be of value for anyone interested in the topics of digitization and digital preservation.

Recommended Textbook:

• Arms, W. Y. (2001). Digital Libraries. The MIT Press. Available through Amazon: 0262511274.

• Borgman, C. L. (2007). Scholarship in the Digital Age: Information, Infrastructure, and the Internet. The MIT Press. Available through Amazon: 0262026198.

Grading Scale

The standard SJSU School of Information Grading Scale is utilized for all iSchool courses:

In order to provide consistent guidelines for assessment for graduate level work in the School, these terms are applied to letter grades:

• C represents Adequate work; a grade of "C" counts for credit for the course;
• B represents Good work; a grade of "B" clearly meets the standards for graduate level work;
  For core courses in the MLIS program (not MARA) — INFO 200, INFO 202, INFO 204 — the iSchool requires that students earn a B in the course. If the grade is less than B (B- or lower) after the first attempt you will be placed on administrative probation.  You must repeat the class the following semester. If -on the second attempt- you do not pass the class with a grade of B or better (not B- but B) you will be disqualified.
  
• A represents Exceptional work; a grade of "A" will be assigned for outstanding work only.

Students are advised that it is their responsibility to maintain a 3.0 Grade Point Average (GPA).

University Policies

General Expectations, Rights and Responsibilities of the Student

As members of the academic community, students accept both the rights and responsibilities incumbent upon all members of the institution. Students are encouraged to familiarize themselves with SJSU's policies and practices pertaining to the procedures to follow if and when questions or concerns about a class arises. See University Policy S90-5 at http://www.sjsu.edu/senate/docs/S90-5.pdf. More detailed information on a variety of related topics is available in the SJSU catalog at http://info.sjsu.edu/web-dbgen/catalog/departments/LIS.html. In general, it is recommended that students begin by seeking clarification or discussing concerns with their instructor. If such conversation is not possible, or if it does not serve to address the issue, it is recommended that the student contact the Department Chair as a next step.

Dropping and Adding

Students are responsible for understanding the policies and procedures about add/drop, grade forgiveness, etc. Refer to the current semester's Catalog Policies section at http://info.sjsu.edu/static/catalog/policies.html. Add/drop deadlines can be found on the current academic year calendars document on the Academic Calendars webpage at http://www.sjsu.edu/provost/services/academic_calendars/. The Late Drop Policy is available at http://www.sjsu.edu/aars/policies/latedrops/policy/. Students should be aware of the current deadlines and penalties for dropping classes.

Information about the latest changes and news is available at the Advising Hub at http://www.sjsu.edu/advising/.

Consent for Recording of Class and Public Sharing of Instructor Material

University Policy S12-7, http://www.sjsu.edu/senate/docs/S12-7.pdf, requires students to obtain instructor's permission to record the course and the following items to be included in the syllabus:

• "Common courtesy and professional behavior dictate that you notify someone when you are recording him/her. You must obtain the instructor's permission to make audio or video recordings in this class. Such permission allows the recordings to be used for your private, study purposes only. The recordings are the intellectual property of the instructor; you have not been given any rights to reproduce or distribute the material."
  • It is suggested that the syllabus include the instructor's process for granting permission, whether in writing or orally and whether for the whole semester or on a class by class basis.
  • In classes where active participation of students or guests may be on the recording, permission of those students or guests should be obtained as well.
• "Course material developed by the instructor is the intellectual property of the instructor and cannot be shared publicly without his/her approval. You may not publicly share or upload instructor generated material for this course such as exam questions, lecture notes, or homework solutions without instructor consent."

Academic integrity

Your commitment, as a student, to learning is evidenced by your enrollment at San Jose State University. The University Academic Integrity Policy F15-7 at http://www.sjsu.edu/senate/docs/F15-7.pdf requires you to be honest in all your academic course work. Faculty members are required to report all infractions to the office of Student Conduct and Ethical Development. The Student Conduct and Ethical Development website is available at http://www.sjsu.edu/studentconduct/.

Campus Policy in Compliance with the American Disabilities Act

If you need course adaptations or accommodations because of a disability, or if you need to make special arrangements in case the building must be evacuated, please make an appointment with me as soon as possible, or see me during office hours. Presidential Directive 97-03 at http://www.sjsu.edu/president/docs/directives/PD_1997-03.pdf requires that students with disabilities requesting accommodations must register with the Accessible Education Center (AEC) at http://www.sjsu.edu/aec to establish a record of their disability.

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