Implications of Interactive Digital Media for Visual Collections

This article presents an overview of current digital technology
and begins with clear explanations of the basics of digital
imaging, hypertext and hypermedia. The author, President of the
""Museum Computer Network'' (USA), describes the development of
interactive learning environments and explains how hypertext and
hypermedia can create a completely new type of environment, one
in which the user creates links between textual and/or visual
materials rather than following predetermined pathways. Bearman
then goes on to describe the pitfalls and limitations inherent
in this type of learning situation as well as the creative
possibilities which it presents for specific learning
experiences. He illustrates his points by describing actual
educational projects. The article also addresses conceptual
issues, such as the problem of obtaining relevant ""hits'' when
searching a very large database composed of both images and
text. He emphasizes the problem which any visual resources
curator or librarian considering a database project has
encountered: ""We still don't know how to 'describe' an image,
since it can be perceived from so many different perspectives
and it does not testify directly to its 'aboutness' or 'ofness'.
This makes indexing even still images for access from a
multiplicity of vantage points a chancy proposition''. CD-ROM,
however, holds great promise for such projects as cooperative
database productions and authority files shared between
institutions.


Citaten:
Besser, H.: Digitalized Images for Museums (Mus.Studies J. v3,i1,Fall 1987)