Thanks to all of you for a recent burst of activity! We are glad that nearly everyone is able to attend the final meeting on May 7th and 8th and we look forward to seeing you again. Spring will definitely be in full swing in Rochester by then.
In preparation for the close of the project we have prepared a rather lengthy – but very important – survey for you to complete. It is available here and will be sent to you as an email attachment as well. It will probably be easiest to print it out and fill it in. You can then mail it to me or bring it with you in May. Alternatively, if you would prefer to fill it out on the computer, feel free to email the completed survey to Patti – pafpph@rit.edu. We would like to have them all returned by the end of May. Many of the subjects of this blog posting are included in the survey and you can respond there. All of your input will be summarized and posted on the blog. Your feedback and commentary is essential to this project and it is critical to us that your forward your thoughts and experiences to us.
Download the Survey (Word Doc)
A few other project activities remain. The IPI project team initially planned to complete final assessment reports for each participating institution before the May meeting, but we won’t be able to finish these until after the meeting. We have determined where IPI’s two follow up visits to participant institutions will take place—The University of Colorado in Boulder and the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston.
Finally, you may have already noticed some programming updates made to the MyClimateData site recently. These include:
- Additional permissions have been added to Logins/Edit Logins (Utilities Page)
- Repairs were made to non-functioning PDF links – hopefully they work now
- A new feature was added because some MyClimateData users requested the ability to select the end date of data when creating an Information List. This can be done by adding a new field called “End Data Date” (Utilities/Manage Information Fields/Add), then adding that field to the information displayed for each Location (Utilities/Edit Hierarchy/select field to add from drop down). Next, go to the Data Manager screen – this screen populates the End Data Date field with the appropriate date from the summary table into the locations table. If it exists, the field “Last Download” will also be updated automatically.
- Information Lists (Utilities) – previously the PDF output format was “List” by default. Now you have a choice to print the Information in the “List” or the “Table” format.
- Several repairs were made to the Notes function to improve ease of use.
- The Utilities/Local Backup/Backup of Imported Files function now gives you the option to backup the files as PEM2 files, CSV, or European CSV (requested by users in Denmark).
We are well aware that all our users want to overlay graphs and we are developing the programming to allow the graphing views to function as they do in PEMdata.com. This will probably work from the Pick List with the ability to select locations and graphs and to print graphs and work them into reports.
Feature Topic #1: Thoughts on MyClimateData, PEM2 and PEMdata.com
Please consider the initial WebERA project goals and design criteria as you review the past year of activity and complete the project survey.
As stated in our grant application, the primary research and development activity of the WebERA project was the creation of a web server application for environmental risk assessment with participation and input from a group of 15 research partners who would evaluate and refine the system.
Design criteria for MyClimateData.com included ease of use, data upload over the web, and beneficial analysis and reporting functions. The system would be built around the monitored space, including an organizational location hierarchy. It was also important to include a searchable database linked to each monitored location with descriptions of the type of collections and materials present in the space, mechanical system information and so on.
IPI’s research-based philosophy encourages a more holistic, long-term view of managing the environment for preservation. We want to persuade users to move away from straight line temperature and RH settings and concern over short term fluctuations and to focus more on seasonal cycles and metrics that identify the actual effect of environment on material decay.
We want to promote the sharing of this information with institutional stakeholders in collection care, facilities management and administration.
Please assess the relative value of what we’ve designed, including MyClimateData, PEMdata and the PEM2 data logger. Consider the pros and cons of each software program – and if you are familiar with Climate Notebook desktop software, let us know how that compares as well.
We know there is a disconnect between how people are used to managing the environment for preservation and the philosophy we’ve developed – how should IPI address this? Do the tools we’ve developed help?
Feature Topic #2: Marketing and Pricing Considerations
Another objective of the WebERA research project was to determine, with the help of the pilot group, how best to structure an environmental monitoring system (the PEM2 loggers and a web-based collection storage system) and how much museums and libraries could afford to pay for it. One approach is to lease PEM2 loggers on an annual basis, with free access to either PEMdata or MyClimateData. Another is to sell the loggers and charge for use of the website on a monthly, quarterly, or annual subscription basis. Charges could be applied depending on the number of loggers or monitored locations perhaps. We could consider a series of products and prices – starting with a basic version of PEMdata, adding modules such as the location database, the Notes system, the Photos and Maps functions, etc., for additional cost. We have also considered charging for IPI consultation services such as setting up an environmental monitoring system, data analysis, providing energy saving suggestions, etc. We are very interested in your thoughts and suggestions about pricing and marketing IPI’s environmental tools and services.
Feature Topic #3: Additional Suggestions
IPI, as an organization, is currently undertaking a strategic planning process to insure our long term viability and relevance to our constituency. IPI has long served its audiences well in providing significant research, publications and tools to enable preservation of collections. However, we are in a transitional period as funding sources that have subsidized our activities are reduced, many cultural heritage institutions move their focus from object to data preservation, and the photo industry is subsumed into the printing and consumer electronics industries. We are a non-profit research organization but we also have to raise enough money to sustain the lab, the staff and the work that we do. One of our goals is to develop concrete environmental management products and services, price them correctly, and market them to the right audience.
If you have any thoughts related to this issue, or any additional suggestions about our environmental products and services, we would love to hear them. We have always tried to work with the best interests of our constituents in the preservation field in mind, and we appreciate your input.
