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| MONTH | NUMBER OF SUCCESSFUL REQUESTS |
| January 2001 | 1, 878 (= 60 visits per day) |
| February 2001 | 2, 459 (= 88 visits per day) |
| March 2001 | 2, 623 (= 85 visits per day) |
IT: Project Web Site, Database and Subject Gateway
The CASBAH team has been discussing and revising the field lists for both archive and printed sources collection descriptions. A meeting took place between Frances Blomeley (ULCC), CD and RSB on March 5th during which the content and format of tables for the MySQL database were revised. DW also contacted Robert Baxter (Aim25 Project) regarding the use of database administration queries developed for Aim25 on the CASBAH MySQL database and the information gleaned from both sets of consultations enabled the CASBAH team to finalise the structure of the MySQL database at the meeting on March 22nd.
Regarding the format of the archival descriptions, the following structural changes have been agreed:
- The field list will be based on ISAD(G) data elements and several additional administrative fields.
- The 'Parent ID' field will be retained for database administration purposes, but hidden from the collection descriptions displayed to end-users after running a search.
- 'Date From' and 'Date To' fields will remain as separate data elements in MySQL to allow both sets of dates to be searchable, unlike the Aim25 database where field 3.1.3 is expressed as a date range.
- The 'Legal Status' field will be removed completely from the database table and any records that currently have comments about the legal status of collections will have this data transferred to the 'Conditions of Access' field.
- The 'URL' field for the collection description will not be included in the body of the record that is displayed to end-users of the database. However, the field will be retained to allow this information to appear above the collection description record, similar to the way collection descriptions are displayed after searching the Aim25 database.
- The 'Archivst's Note' field will be retained and referred to as 'Recorder's Note' on the CASBAH MySQL database.
- The 'Acknowledgements' field will be removed completely from the archive field list and all data associated with this field transferred to the Recorder's note field.
- The additional fields ('Caribbean, Black or Asian Interest', 'Specific Groups' and 'Keywords') will be retained in MySQL but displayed in the 'Index Entries' listed below each record that is displayed after the database is searched.
The field list for printed sources now includes:
| FIELDS | EXPLANATION |
| Description ID | Auto-incremented database record identifier number. |
| Site ID | Site ID used in the database. |
| Title | The name of the collection. |
| Description | A free text summary of the collection. |
| Strength(s) | Text about special items or dominant subject areas within the collection. |
| Size | A statement (either precise or approximate) of the number of items within the collection and the type of material e.g. 10, 000 books; 250 pamphlets, 4000 periodicals; 300 box- files of press-cuttings; 53 files of reports etc. |
| Catalogue | Name of the OPAC used (e.g.Aleph, Unicorn, etc.) |
| Catalogue URL | Web site address for the library catalogue. |
| Accrual Status | A free text description of the accrual policy, method and period of the collection. |
| Note | Any general information about the collection not covered by the other fields. |
| Subject | Terms used to indicate the subject matter of the collection |
| Name | The names of personal or corporate bodies associated with the collection, or the subject of it. |
| Place | The geographical/spatial coverage of items in the collection |
| Caribbean, Black or Asian Interest | Whether the collection is pertinent to Caribbean studies, Black British History, Asian British History, or any combination of these three disciplines. |
| Recorder | Name of description compiler. |
| Record Date | Date of description. |
Regarding the indexing of collection descriptions on the CASBAH MySQL database, testing of LCSH and UNESCO thesaurus terms will take place during w/c 2nd April and the results shared at the forthcoming partners/Steering Group meeting on 24th April.
CD, RSB and the web designer, Jackie Collins, are on course to complete the revised CASBAH web pages by the end of April 2001. Sections that are completely finished now include: Introduction (= cover page for the site in Flash), Home Page, About the Project, Modules (which will be renamed 'Areas of Work' in the home page menu), Reports, Links, Acknowledgements, Contacts. The page 'Search the CASBAH Database' and its associated help and feedback pages are still under construction and will not be complete until mid-May. The date for uploading the revised site has been provisionally fixed for w/c 21st May 2001 and representatives from CASBAH's partner institutions and the Steering Group will have prior sight of the pages at the forthcoming meeting on 24th April. This will enable CD to incorporate any suggested changes to the site's layout and/or content made at the meeting during the first two weeks in May.
3. Action Points / Priorities for April-May 2001
General: 1) There will be a joint meeting for CASBAH project partners and members of the Steering Group on Tuesday 24th April.
2) The team will attend the Black and Asian Archives Working Party (BAAWP) meeting on Wednesday 16th May (venue: Institute of Commonwealth Studies, 2pm)
3) The project team will begin discussions about hosting a Black History Month event at the Institute of Commonwealth Studies in October 2001.
Archives: 1) CD and RSB will spend time completing collection-level descriptions for the resources surveyed at the GMCRO and Labour History Archive at the NMLH with a view to submitting survey reports to both repositories by early July 2001.
2) RSB will continue work on the MRC survey.
3) RSB will continue to work on recording archive survey methodologies for the survey tool document.
4) Preparatory research for both the Glasgow-based and Leicestershire archive surveys will commence in April 2001 and dates for visits to both regions will be finalised during the first week in May.
Printed and Audio-Visual Resources: 1) CD will send electronic copies of the printed sources survey collection description template and guidance documentation to Julie Devonald (Ahmed Iqbal Ullah Race Relations Archive) by Tuesday 10th April, in advance of sending out copies of the finalised printed sources questionnaire during May.
2) Printed sources survey questionnaires will be distributed to a sample of c.70 academic, public and special libraries from mid-May onwards.
Collaborative Collection Management: 1) Although a document about this aspect of the project's work will be circulated at the joint partners/Steering Group meeting on 24th April, the CASBAH team do not plan to activate the CCM module group until after the results of the printed sources questionnaire have been collated and analysed.
Awareness: 1) Information World Review will publish an article about the work of the CASBAH project in the May issue of IWR magazine, based on information supplied by CD and RSB. Please look at the IWR web site http://www.iwr.co.uk/iwr/index.asp for further information.
2) CD will give a presentation about the work of the project to library and information management students at Thames Valley University on Thursday 31st May 2001.
IT: 1) CD will send the final version of the field lists for both the archival and printed sources sections of the CASBAH MySQL database to Frances Blomeley (ULCC) by 23rd April 2001. 2) The first batch of archive survey data will be exported from the Wolverhampton Archive and Local Studies Access Database to the CASBAH MySQL database by May 14th. Once the first batch of survey data has been tested other survey data will be exported in batches on a fortnightly basis. 3) Revisions to the CASBAH web site will be finalised during w/c Monday 30th April and uploaded to http://www.casbah.ac.uk by May 14th. The new site will be 're-launched' during the w/c Monday 21st May 2001. 4) CD will continue to work on the design of the CASBAH project's promotional leaflet and will distribute a draft to partner institutions, members of the Steering Group and members of the CASBAH-RSLP listserv by the end of May 2001. 5) CD will prepare a short summary of the work completed during the Manchester regional archive survey for inclusion on the CASBAH web site. The information will be displayed on the page entitled 'Search the CASBAH database' as an example of the forthcoming collection-level descriptions that will eventually be accessible when the MySQL database goes live. Copyright clearance permission is currently being sought to use up to 5 photographs from the GMCRO's Documentary Photography Archive on this web page (in JPG format) to illustrate the collection-level descriptions from the DPA's Black History Project, Roots Festival Committee History Project and Sikh Family History Project. 6) A decision will be made concerning what to do with the Multiple Archive Descriptions Database during the May team meeting.
CD - 06.04.01
4. Appendix : Project Researcher's March Report Roiyah Saltus - Blackwood
Contents General Summary · Archives · Printed and AV Sources · Survey Tool, Summary tables and Database Evaluation · IT: Project Web Site, Database and Subject Gateway · Awareness raising, Outreach and Training Initiatives
General Summary
During the last month, my focus has been conducting background research for the two surveys in Manchester and beginning to analyse the MRC survey data. Details of these activities can be found in the Archives section. During this month team members developed a methodology for the mapping of printed and a-v sources and exercise. My contribution to these latest developments is given in the Printed and AV Sources section. Another important activity has been developing the infrastructure for summarising the survey and mapping work, and evaluating the database. Details of these developments can be found in the Survey tool, Summary tables and Database Evaluation section of this report.
CD has taken over responsibility for the development of the MySQL database. My work in this module can be found in the IT section. This section also details my contribution to the updating of the CASBAH website, but please refer to CD's report for full details. We continue to find ways to promote the aims of the project. This month's activities can be found in the last section, Awareness raising, Outreach and Training Initiatives
Archives
Modern Records Centre The Trades Union Congress and the National Union of Seamen are the two collections that were surveyed. The majority of work involves inputting and tidying. The TUC records covering the period 1920 - 1960 will be inputted once this section of the TUC has been retro-converted. Relevant records covering the period 1960 - 1970 will be taken from the archive hub. The NUS data needs to be tidied up and the required fields need to be checked. Due to the uploading of all our surveys, this work will not begin until June 2001.
Manchester: The National Museum of Labour History (NMLH) and the Greater Manchester County Record Office (GMCRO) The Manchester surveys were conducted between the 26 - 30 March 2001. Please see CD's report for full details of the collections that were examined and the other sites we visited. Although the data has not yet been analysed, some preliminary comments regarding the continued development of our survey methodology can be made. First, these were the first surveys to be conducted at sites that are not in partnership with CASBAH . As a way in which to begin to narrow down which archives to visit, CD sent requests for information to key repositories, and it was based on the replies and willingness to contribute that the sites were selected. At Labour Archive at the NMLH, Mr Stephen Bird was already familiar with the aims of the project. Based at the GMCRO, Elizabeth Oxborrow-Cowan had already made contact with us. We were warmly received at both sites and moreover, the collections to be surveyed had been set aside for us. The canvassing of repositories in order to ascertain (a) relevant and possible collections (b) the possibility of conducting survey work and (c) the interest and availability of the record managers will be used to help narrow down future survey sites.
Second, in moving beyond our partner sites, we have planed to base all the remaining surveys in key regional areas in order to be able to comment on the availability of resources on a national level. Manchester was the first of our five regional surveys. In our preparation, CD and I agreed to try to visit other local libraries and archives and this step proved hugely beneficial. In our planned visit to the Ahmed Iqbal Ullah Race Relations Archive and our unplanned visit to the Manchester Archive and Local Studies Centre, we gained great insight about other archives and libraries. This knowledge will give added depth to our comments regarding the availability of resources and the activities of record managers in Manchester and the surrounding areas. CD and I were also able us promote the aims of the project and encourage contributions to our database. The combination of site work and planned visits will also become part of the methodology for our regional surveys.
Third, the majority of the survey work entailed highlighting known collections, with limited investigative work into hitherto hidden, subsumed or unknown record collections. A departure from the balance often made between highlighting and investigating/uncovering, this method of surveying has noted advantages. It allows us to work quicker and thus cover more collections. It also allows the record managers to work from a position of familiarity. For having highlighted the collections they are aware of, investigative steps into less familiar, but possibly relevant collections could then be made.
Four, this was the first survey where two members worked together. Having more than one team member competent in conducting surveys is an obvious advantage to the project. It allows us to survey more collections and, more generally, it provides a stronger sense of the process of collecting, organising and uploading the data to MySQL. However, future surveys and project work planning will have to take into consideration the fact that we are working with only one laptop.
Survey tool, Summary tables and Database Evaluation
Survey Tool Due to time and other priorities, the survey tool has not been worked on, and will not be part of my work schedule for the month of April.
Archive survey and Printed Sources Summary Table The archive survey and printed sources summary tables were created last month in order to provide a quick summary of the relevant collections and lower level descriptions found at each site. The summary tables will enable team members to pick out (a) theme strands, (b) key collections, (c) and important insights that were gained during the survey visit. The inputting of summary information will take place in tandem with preparing the survey data to be uploaded to the CASBAH database.
Database Evaluation The CASBAH database will need to be evaluated. Evaluation of the database can be done once the majority of the inputting work is completed and during the life of the project (January onwards). It should be a period set aside where limited access is given to a list of groups and individuals to enable us to analyse usage, and address any arising issues before the database is officially launched. The database evaluation period, together with the summary table and survey tool, will play an important role in allowing us to make concrete statements, regarding our success in reaching the aims and deliverables underpinning the CASBAH project. DE is a new development and needs to be discussed and further developed.
Printed and AV Sources
Mapping Printed and AV Sources - Methodology The methodology underpinning the exercise to map printed collections and a-v materials has developed significantly over the last month. Drawing on discussions with CD and at team meetings, my focus has been to help develop a methodology for this module. Documents created include (a) summary of the issues surrounding our aim to map printed and a-v sources in university libraries for Black and Asian Studies,(b) a suggested criteria to use in determining whether to include a library in our mapping exercise and (c) a definition of our sample method.
Main points: Black and Asian resources in Academic libraries Caribbean Studies is an established area of study, and the mapping of teaching activities in this field has already been done, thanks to the Institute of Latin American Studies. Studies of Black and Asian peoples in the UK is not established in the same way as Caribbean Studies. Moreover, a systematic mapping of teaching or research activity has yet to be done, and thus it is clear it is clear that due to the specificity of Black and Asian Studies, the methodology has to be slightly different to the one developed for mapping Caribbean Studies printed and a-v sources. One way forward is to target academics researching and teaching in these areas so as to build up a map of key institutions and possibly a list of libraries.
Criteria for inclusion in the printed and a-v mapping exercise The criteria for inclusion are drawn from 'The Collections' section of the project proposal that outlines the collection strengths of our partner institutions. Sample method - Stratified sampling This method of sampling first (a) organises libraries into various types (special library, university library, public library etc) and (b) then into 11 regional areas (South East, London, Ireland etc). Once completed, the process of deciding which of the different types of libraries in the 11 regional areas are to receive questionnaires/templates is based on (i) recommendations from academics, (ii) response from the institutions themselves, (iii) the results yielded from surveying online library catalogues, and (iv) random selection.
Project Web Site, Database and Subject Gateway
Web Pages: Please refer to CD's report
MySQL Database CD has taken over responsibility for the development of the MySQL database. There will be some slight changes to the MySQL database and my responsibility is to help to ensure that the data is amended accordingly and then uploaded.
Awareness raising, Outreach and Training Initiatives
Awareness raising A review of the progress we have made has been published in the latest Society for Caribbean Studies Newsletter. A similar article will be submitted to GLAN. We need to plan our activities for Black History Month.
Outreach The Moss Side and Hulme Community Development Trust have recently received funding for their Windrush Heritage Millennium Project. An integral part of the project will be the Black Heritage centre which will reflect 'both the achievements and aspirations of the black and ethnic minority communities of Moss Side and Hulme by providing an historical resource and educational facility. Information regarding CASBAH's aims and our recent work in Manchester has been sent.
RSB 06.04.01
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