Interrogating Archives

Lewis Carroll Scrapbook

PhilSci Archive

Classics Archive

How is the archive portal designed? Text-based? Image-based?

Predominately text-based for both the PhilSci Archive and the Classics Archive though the Lewis Carroll Scrapbook includes both text and images.

What kind of use and users does it seem to invite? Those who already know what they're looking for? Those who are just exploring?

Each archive is designed for those who have a particular interest in that specific area of expertise. Once on the archive though, the user may open up an abstract that discusses a general overview of what each topic has to offer.

How easy is it to search the archive? How flexible are the search tools?

The PhilSci archive is separated into topics. The archive is very particular to areas where philosophy and science intersect- a combination that is academically fruitful. The user approaches the archive with an inquiring mind, clicking and cross referencing various topics in order to dig deeper and deeper into their particular interest.

How structured or open is the archive interface? Does it guide the user through the collection? Does it offer few guided paths for the user?

The interface of each archive is structured and organized very well. For the topic based Archives like PhilSci Archive or the Classics Archive, it is up to the user to navigate their way through the particulars of the collection because I don't think the entire archive is meant to be used by each individual. Among the different topics, various articles and books are listed as sources of further research. Once I clicked on a topic of interest, I searched the page for the keyword that was relevant to what I was interested in. For the Lewis Carroll Scrapbook on the other hand, it is very likely a single scholar who is interested in Lewis Carroll's work will explore the entire archive in the span of their research.

How are the primary (archival) materials presented? With lots of context? Without any context? Are the primary materials manipulable? i.e. zoom in and out? With and without frames?

The Lewis Carroll archive was able to take the 1866 illustrations by Robbert Tenniel and include them on the archive. There is also a portrait gallery that includes many old photos taken by Dodgson. If you click on the photo, the user is taken to a slightly larger and secluded version of the photo but the user cannot zoom in or out.