Evaluation Process

18 April 04 (DRAFT)
To: California Newspaper Digitization Project Test Site Evaluation Group
Re: Instructions for evaluating the test sites

The goal of the California Newspaper Digitization Project is to create online access to California historical newspapers. This first, study phase of the Project is designed to answer four questions:

• What features and levels of functionality are required of an online access system to meet the many types of needs for and uses of California historical newspapers?
• How well can the existing old newspaper microfilms be digitized for online use?
• Is a combination of digitization technology and content management software with the features and functionality needed for online access to California's newspapers commercially available?
• What are the approximate costs to create a million page database with the desired features and functionality?

The final report from the study phase will include a list of recommended database features and levels of functionality based on the evaluations, as well as comments regarding the overall suitability of current systems to support online access to historical newspapers for the people of California.

Nine service providers have created websites with test databases to showcase their offerings and recommendations. All of the service providers received identical rolls (one/provider) of 2nd generation negative microfilm. The test roll was made up of six segments of microfilm representing a range of microfilming practices and quality of product created over the last 50 years. The service providers converted the contents of all or parts of the test roll via digitization or manual keying, imported the data to a content management system of their choice, and mounted the database on their websites for our review.

The first step of the evaluation is to review the features and functionality of each of the test sites to identify which features are most valuable for your work with historical newspapers, and how well each of the features meets your expectations. From newspaper researcher to reference librarian to genealogist to historian, your needs and uses of historical California newspapers are varied; the survey forms are intended to capture that diversity.

1. Please print out this document, the attached survey forms for all of the test sites, and the "Comparisons" survey form. You should have 9 survey forms altogether.
• BMI evaluation form
2. Match up each survey form with its test site. The survey forms are not identical for all test sites because different test sites have different features, leading to different survey questions. In instances where two or more sites have identical features using the same technology (pdf navigation, for example), the evaluator is asked about the feature at only one of the sites to save evaluators' time by reducing redundancy.
3. Please visit each of the test sites as soon as possible to be sure you are able to access them using the instructions on the appropriate survey form. If you have technical problems accessing the sites, please email me at bogden@library.berkeley.edu as soon as possible; several Project staff are standing by to field and address questions. When appropriate, I'll respond to the whole group so everyone benefits from the exchange.
4. Please return the forms to me via US mail, first class, by Friday, May 21st.