================= HES POSTING ================= 
 
New Guide to Creating Digital Resources from Historical Documents 
 
The History Data Service is pleased to announce the web publication of 
Digitising History, a new guide to creating, documenting and preserving 
digital resources derived from historical documents. The guide is 
available at http://hds.essex.ac.uk/g2gp/digitising_history/index.html and 
will also be published by Oxbow Books later in the year. For more 
information, please contact Oxbow Books, email: [log in to unmask], +44 
(0) 1865) 241249, fax: ++44 (0) 1865) 794449, URL: 
http://www.oxbowbooks.com/ 
 
The guide is intended as a reference work for individuals and organisations 
involved with, or planning, the computerisation of historical source 
documents. It aims to recommend good practice and standards that are 
generic and relevant to a range of data creation situations, from student 
projects through to large-scale research projects. The guide focuses on the 
creation of tabular data which can be used in databases, spreadsheets or 
statistics packages. Many of the guidelines are, however, more widely 
applicable. 
 
The guide includes a glossary and a bibliography of recommended reading, 
and offers guidance about: Effectively designing and managing a data 
creation project. Transferring historical source documents into digital 
form and designing a database. Choosing appropriate data formats and 
ensuring that a digital resource can be preserved without significant 
information loss. Documenting a data creation project. 
 
The guide is one of three commissioned by the History Data Service as part 
of the Arts and Humanities Data Service publication series Guides to Good 
Practice in the Creation and Use of Digital Resources 
http://ahds.ac.uk/public/guides.html. The series aims to provide guidance 
about applying recognised good practice and standards to the creation and 
use of digital resources in the arts and humanities. 
 
Cressida Chappell, Acting Head, History Data Service, Data Archive, 
University of Essex, Wivenhoe Park, Colchester, CO4 3SQ, Phone +44 (0)1206 
873984, Fax +44 (0)1206 872003, email [log in to unmask], 
http://hds.essex.ac.uk/ 
 
============ FOOTER TO HES POSTING ============ 
For information, send the message "info HES" to [log in to unmask]