>> Working Groups GUIDE TO GOOD PRACTICE: Publication, Development & Sustainability Phase DRAFT The National Initiative for a Networked Cultural Heritage seeks $60,000 from the Getty Trust for the initial component of a three-part plan for the online publication of the Guide to Good Practice, the development and promotion of the Guide and arrangements for its continued updating and sustainability. PUBLICATION The NINCH Guide to Good Practice in the Digital Representation and Management of Cultural Heritage Materials is a document created by the Humanities Advanced Technology and Information Institute (HATII) of Glasgow University, under the direction of the NINCH Working Group for Best Practices. The contract with HATII stipulates the delivery of a text manuscript of the Guide. However, the Working Group has decided that the best format for publication of the Guide is as a Web-based document for the greatest possible distribution. This web-based document would be structured as a hierarchical 'decision-tree' with different layers. The top layer or 'limb' of each chapter would be a topical introduction suitable for non-technical administrators. Further layers or 'branches' down into each chapter would contain increasing levels of examples and technical details suitable for project managers and technical implementers Alongside the Guide itself, we will publish the extensive interview reports with 36 sites, the interview instrument and a bibliography. All of this material will be published electronically and, we believe, it should be a resource that is free of charge to all. In addition to the web material, there will be a printed "Companion" to the Guide that will explain and introduce the Guide. In order to translate the Guide document created by HATII into a Web publication that can be navigated and easily and productively used as a tool, NINCH needs to contract with a web designer. The planned publication and deployment of the Guide is a three-part process: 1. Online publication of a fairly flat html document made available as promptly as possible for feedback from the community. This would comprise the Guide (with definition, question, link and analysis boxes), bibliography, interview report and interview instrument in PDF. Some minimal design involved. Some formal feedback form and mechanism should also be devised. 2. After testing a basic flow-chart with limited focus groups, we will design the flow-chart interface, integrating it with a set of existing decision trees. Having one decision tree for each chapter will facilitate access to any specific section of the Guide for patrons with a wide range of questions and levels of expertise. 3. After receiving further feedback, we will re-design the system to provide tightly integrated linking from specific recommendations to relevant sections of interviews on which those recommendations are based. Design specifications will thus include: 1. Design an overall web environment for the Guide. 2. Translate the electronic Word documents to a set of linked html documents. These include: a. The 14-chapter 260-page Guide with definition, question, link and analysis boxes. b. The 93-page Bibliography c. The 380-page Interview Reports d. The 27-page Interview Instrument (a PDF file) 3. Design and implement a feedback and comments mechanism. 4. Design overall interface and integrate and implement decision trees and presentation of Iteration Two. 5. Amend design in response to user feedback and add further layer of links with interview sites to produce Iteration Three. DEVELOPMENT & PROMOTION For the Guide to be used as widely as we believe it should, NINCH needs to engage in several promotional activities. These should include e-mail and Web announcements about the Guide and why and how it should be used that target the specific user groups. In addition, we propose a series of workshops around the country that give introductions to the issues covered by the Guide (from Project management, and selection of material, through digitization itself to long-term management and preservation of digital assets) and demonstrations of how to use the Guide. We propose a small variable team including a member of the HATII team, and a member of the NINCH Working Group. 8 Workshops Publicity Travel Facility rental etc Fees for presenters 3. UPDATING & SUSTAINING To be of real value, the Guide to Good Practice will need to be maintained and updated to ensure that its information is current. We propose extending and developing the current NINCH Working Group into an "editorial board" with each member taking responsibility for a certain section of the Guide, revising and adding information where necessary and announcing changes to our audience. We propose this work be recompensed at a modest level.