Presentation given at the Society of Archivist's Scottish Group meeting in Hawick on 25 September 2009.

1. Introduction to Web 2.0
for Archives

2. What is Web 2.0?
Its not:
• just a buzzword
• a revolution
• all about technology
• just for teenagers
It’s a state of mind
• Be open
• Encourage participation
• Provide good user experience

3. Benefits of participating
Web 2.0 approach and tools can give an archive:
• Increased awareness of collections
• Varied access points
• Diversification of users
• Improved relationships & links in the sector
• Additional information about collections
• New dynamic ways to engage
The era of control is over:
You can either stay in the bunker,
or you can jump out there and try
to participate, to not participate is
criminal.
- Ed Dilworth, Wired Magazine
Archives have extraordinary content
and the ability to touch real people
= a duty to engage and share
Why participate?
Vs

4. Web 2.0 Technologies
Flickr
Use to:
• Share digital images
• Collect images
• Collect comments
• Link to your official site
Example:
ArchivesOnFlickr
Wikis
Use to:
• Capture user knowledge
• Add value
• Give users a forum
• Revise catalogues safely!
Example:
Your Archives

5. Web 2.0 Technologies
Podcasts
Use to:
• Share recordings with wider audience
• Record talks, instructions for using archive
and audio transcriptions of documents
Example:
TNA - Podcast Series
Videos
Use to:
• Share films and digital media
• Connect with different user base
• Allow reuse of material
• Provide information and instructions
Example:
National Library of Scotland - NLofScotland

6. Blogs
Are websites with frequently updated posts, links to other sites and
reader comments
Use to:
• Communicate
• Host online exhibits
• Collection of the month or Whimsy (Mustaches of the 19th
Century)
• Highlight treasures
• Transcripts of diaries or letters (George Orwell / Robert Burns)
• Subject based (Business Archives Scotland)
• Share news about your repository (British Cartoon Archive)
• Document the processing of a collection (John Murray Archive)

7. Twitter (microblogging)
Use to:
• Similar to blogs but shorter posts
• Share news
• Tweet letters, diaries, postcards
• Answer user queries
Examples:
• Edwardian postcard project at Lancaster
University tweets excerpts from postcards in
their collection..
• West Yorkshire Archive Services are using
twitter as a news service

8. Blogs: a tale of 2 blogs
Glasgow University Archive Services
• Part of larger library services blog
• Focus on publicising events, websites,
launches and projects
• Encourage staff to post about personal
experiences or research interests
• Stats since May: 4950 views, 86 in total (24
from archives)
Ballast Blog
• Organisational blog about our collections
and working life
• Focus on images
• Only archivist posting at present
• Stats since May: 641 views, 45 posts

9. How to find your way?
Think
• What do you want your blog to do?
Make time
• Commit to regular blog posts
• Take time to learn what other organisations
are doing
Create an organisational identity
• This allows multiple members of staff to
work on it and is more ”official”
Make the internet work for you
• Create a start page
• Use bookmarks

10. Let the Internet do the work
• Different accounts available (igoogle, netvibes, bloglines)
• Allow you to collate news feeds, blogs, twitter comments, bookmarks, flickr, articles
• Pushes content to you in one place for comment or action
• Saves time
• Make it a part of your daily routine
Create a “start page”

12. Questions
Get in touch
k.king@archives.gla.ac.uk
01505 328488
More examples available
http://www.webwatchingforarchivists.blogspot.com