Information Systems for Archivists and Museologist

or how not to get lost in the digital world

Taught by: Mgr. Martina Orosová, PhD., Mgr. Lenka Vargová, PhD.

ECTS: 4

Form of teaching: lecture

Objective:

The course provides students with the theoretical and practical knowledge necessary to understand, design and use information systems in the field of archival file management and museum collections. Students will learn to apply modern technologies for digitising and making cultural heritage accessible and understand the basics of information systems and their application in the field of archival practice and museology. The aim is to master the basic requirements and components of expert software tools for managing museum collections and archival files, the ability to analyse and evaluate information systems in terms of their effectiveness and usability and acquire knowledge about data and metadata management.

Brief overview:

Introduction to the subject, overview of the syllabus and requirements of the subject, and the importance of information systems in archival and museology
Brief history of informatisation and information systems in the context of the development of society, with a focus on archives and museums
Definition, characteristics, goals and tasks of information systems
Software engineering, categories and components of information systems (hardware, software, data, people, processes)
Information systems for archives and museums as expert systems
Phases of information system development, principles of user interface design, implementation and testing of information systems usability
Specification of requirements for an expert information system (Software Requirements Specification, functional specification, technical specification, examples of requirements for an archival and museum information system)
Trusted digital repository, metadata management, data security and protection against cyber threats
Legal aspects of information management (personal data protection, copyright and licensing of digital objects)
Reference model for the Open Archive Information System
International archival standards and their use in information systems (ISDIAH, ISAAR(CPF), ISAD(G), RiC)
Computerisation of archival cultural heritage records
Museum informatics and digital museum (digitisation, visualisation and metadata)
International standards for cataloguing in museums and standards for metadata (Dublin Core, EAD, CDWA, CCO, VRA Core)
Automation of museum collections management (QR codes, RFID, NFC)
Examples of Slovak and foreign archival and museum information systems and practical demonstrations of their functioning

Graduation requirements:

Regular attendance at lectures, three absences are accepted (10%).
Passing the final online knowledge test (90%).

Recommended reading:

Medzinárodné archívne štandardy: International Council on Archives – Online Resource Center – Standards. Dostupné na: https://www.ica.org/online-resource-centre-2/?search=&category=&type=standards&thematic=arrangement-and-description
Dictionary of Archives Terminology. Open Archival Information System. Dostupné na: https://dictionary.archivists.org/entry/open-archival-information-system.html
GIARETTA, David and others. The Open Archival Information System (OAIS) Reference Model and its Usage. Dostupné: ResearchGate
NOWOŹYCKI, Bartosz. The Integrated Archival Information System “ZoSIA” and Its Implications for Archival Descriptive and Reference Practices in the Polish State Archives. In New Review of Information Networking, 26, 1-2, 70-80, July 2021. DOI: 10.1080/13614576.2019.1608578
DEMETEROVÁ, Andrea. Digitalizácia a využitie RFID v správe zbierok SNM – Múzea židovskej kultúry. In Knihovna, 2010, 2, s. 69-72. Dostupné na: https://oldknihovna.nkp.cz/knihovna102/10269.htm
ŽABKOVÁ, Soňa. Digitalizácia kultúrneho dedičstva. Projekt: Digitálne múzeum. In Muzeológia a kultúrne dedičstvo, 2013, 1, s. 39-48.
KRIŠŠÁK, Erik. MUZEANA – východisko z vízií. In ITlib – Informačné technológie a knižnice, 2009, 4. Dostupné na: https://itlib.cvtisr.sk/clanky/clanek1071/
BOHUMELOVÁ, Mária (ed.). Rituál múzea v digitálnom veku. Bratislava : Slovenská národná galéria, 2015, 141 s.
Prezentácie a videonávody z predstavenia nového informačného systému Digitálna evidencia múzejných zbierok (DEMZ), koré sa konalo 6. 11. 2023 v SNM - Historickom múzeu na Bratislavskom hrade. Dostupné na: https://www.snm.sk/odborne-pracoviska/muzeologicky-kabinet/digitalna-evidencia-muzejnych-zbierok-is-demz?clanok=demz-materialy-z-predstavenia-is