Visual Materials and Online Access: Issues Concerning Content Representation

A more holistic view of the current situation surrounding image access is needed. Much of the research into content representation of images appears not to recognize a number of basic issues underlying the difficulty in achieving satisfactory results in this area. Beyond the lack of institutional support typically seen in collections of printed matter, visual materials have not received the level of intellectual research needed to develop the theoretical bases behind their access. Several basic issues stand out as being critical obstacles to providing access to visual materials, including a lack of agreement concerning types of information needed, a lack of a universally applied schema, a lack of standard vocabularies, subect indexing, or user studies. In order to provide a general overview of the topic of images and content representation, this article will investigate each of these problematic topics individually

A preliminary investigation of image indexing: the influence of domain knowledge, indexer experience and image characteristics

This study investigates the application of conceptual terms to images by individuals with various educational and occupational backgrounds. While the inherent complexities of applying terms to images are broadly acknowledged, few studies have addressed the issue of how subject expertise or practical image indexing experience may impact the work. This study begins work in this direction by examining the terms applied to a series of images by individuals with different levels of domain knowledge and practical indexing experience. In addition to the indexers’ varying backgrounds, the study examined how the images’ modes of representation and interpretation influenced the application of terms

Specters in the archive: faculty digital image collections and the problems of invisibility

This paper argues that the devaluation of visual information in favor of textual information will result in a loss of visual information in a digital form that has personal, institutional and cultural ramifications. Framing this discussion is a study of the digital preservation practices among two faculty user groups, archaeologists and art historians. The study examined the faculty users’ knowledge, perception, emotions and processes surrounding the digital images they had created and, or collected to support their professional activities. What was discovered is a worrisome situation where an important part of the cultural record is at serious risk of being lost

Image and Text: A Review of the Literature Concerning the Information Needs and Research Behaviors of Art Historians

This article seeks to present a coherent corpus of materials useful to information professionals interested in the research needs of art historians. The information needs and information-seeking behaviors of art historians are addressed through a discussion of this user group’s research methodologies, the types of materials they consult, the impact of technology on their scholarship, and the discipline’s continuing development and redefinition. As a review of the literature on the topic, this article’s core incorporates the ideas expressed by a number of authors

A Framework for Contextual Metadata Used in the Digital Preservation of Cultural Objects

The quality and the quantity of contextual information found in the descriptive metadata associated with digital representations of cultural objects are frequently inadequate for assuring that users will understand the nature of both the original object that has been digitally preserved, and the digital representation itself. This paper proposes and defines a framework for ensuring that relevant contextual metadata is easily collected and maintained. After identifying and describing eight important dimensions of context, the paper shows how implementing the framework, through a series of questions and prompts, results in a descriptive metadata record that accommodates the important aspects of an object\u27s context. Using two very different cultural objects as examples, an Etruscan tomb painting and a 19th century bridge, the framework demonstrates that sufficient contextual information can be recorded in a metadata schema to enable effective future search, retrieval, examination, use, management, and preservation interactions

Context and Its Role in the Digital Preservation of Cultural Objects

In discussions surrounding digital preservation, context — those properties of an object related to its creation and preservation that make the object\u27s origins, composition, and purpose clear — has been identified as a critical aspect of preservation metadata. Understanding a cultural object\u27s context, in as much detail as possible, is necessary to the successful future use of that object, regardless of its form. The necessity of capturing data about the creation of digital resources and the technical details of the preservation process, has generally been agreed. Capturing many other contextual aspects — such as utility, history, curation, authenticity — that would certainly contribute to successful retrieval, assessment, management, access, and use of preserved digital content, has not been adequately addressed or codified. Recording these aspects of contextual information is especially important for physical objects that are digitally preserved, and thereby removed from their original setting. This paper investigates the various discussions in the literature surrounding contextual information, and then presents a framework which makes explicit the various dimensions of context which have been identified as useful for digital preservation efforts, and offers a way to ensure the capture those aspects of an object\u27s context that are often missed

Interindexer Consistency, Term Usage, and Indexer Experience Levels in the Application of Image Descriptors

This study concerns image indexing and the affect of indexer experience levels on interindexer consistency and the choice of indexing terms. Owing to the importance of concept-based indexing for images, this investigation will provide information for the development of basic criteria for image indexing practices. Four groups of participants with varying degrees of image indexing and subject expertise will be studied through an interactive Web site. A questionnaire will gather information on indexer experience levels and basic demographic data, and an image component of the study will gather indexing terms applied by the participants. Quantitative analysis will be conducted on the data resulting from the questionnaire, while qualitative methods will be employed for analyzing the indexing terms assigned by the participants. The study will examine the multiplicity of term types applied to images (generic description, identification, and interpretation) and the degree of indexing difficulty due to the accessibility of representation and subject content of the image. It is hoped that this study will lead to a deeper understanding of the role of indexer experience in image indexing, which in turn can inform the processes utilized to enhance access to digital collections of visual materials

Flickr Images: What & Why Museums Share

This paper presents the results of a study which explored the use of Flickr by cultural heritage institutions. The study examined two aspects of museums’ use of Flickr: the content of images posted by museums, and the reasons behind sharing their images to the social media site. Images were categorized by the researchers into nine classes based on their visible content, and a brief questionnaire was used to gather data about the image sharing process from museum personnel. The findings reveal that imagery of people visiting the museum and taking part in museum events predominated in the total number of images posted by museums (54% of the total). The images posted to Flickr were most often selected by a single individual at the institution. The particular images posted to Flickr were chosen for a variety of reasons, the most common of these being that they were newsworthy recent events at the museum (e.g. openings, exhibitions, lectures, etc.), or that the staff found the images to have strong affective characteristics. In the responses from museum staff regarding the motivations behind posting the images to Flickr two replies were most commonly given: to provide access to the images, and to take advantage of the technical benefits provided by the photo-sharing service

Digital Curation Vignettes: Personal, Academic, and Organizational Digital Information

This panel presents variations on the theme of digital curation by examining the digital information management and preservation practices of three different populations. Personal digital information management, personal collections transferred to institutional repositories, and a digital archiving case in a private organization, offer a wide view of the types of contexts in which digital material is being produced “in the wild.” Across the cases we found that digital record-keeping and preservation practices are not well understood or established, and that a vast amount of digital content created currently is at risk. Other issues, such as an individual’s perception of digital information value, and the feasibility of preservation beyond an individual’s or organization’s lifetime, surfaced as determinants of the current situation. The findings have important implications for appraisal and post-custodial archival strategies. They are also useful for identifying critical decision points when digital curation issues are best addressed