I’m currently working at the MSU Libraries on a grant to create alternative/gaming interfaces to the Making of Modern Michigan project.
We’ve come up with a lot of really great ideas. Among them are an automatically created subject hiearchy using WordNet and a Google Maps overview of some of the collections.
If you get a chance, check out some of the work at MMM alternative interfaces.
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I’m liking those new interfaces. So much better than the old search technique. I’m from Australia and have no idea what to look for so the tag cloud worked well for me. The map interface was disappointingly broken.
I still think a lot more could be done. I want to be able to look through the image collections far quicker than is possible using any of the current interfaces. Also not enough information is shown, you have to click around a lot to get at it, when there’s plenty of space in the browser to show it all at once.
I reckon the right interface could really unlock this treasure trove of archives.