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I think gaming could provide a new and interesting way to generate interest in history, especially for younger students. As Taylor states, it could allow for a wider public embracement of historical studies.
However I’m not convinced that gaming could ever be used for meaningful research purposes of historians or give any meaningful historical value. I think a consequence of gaming is naturally — as Taylor notes himself — that these games use only a historical premise, and are not designed as historical simulators. The developers may have an interest in history, but are not historians. Even a game designed by historians would not truly recreate history, it at best would offer an accurate visual representation of history but not history as it truly occurred. Additionally, even if the medium could achieve in recreating historical events perfectly as they occurred, it’d then arguably lose some degree of that interactiveness quality.
One element I think would be crucial in providing an excellent search engine for historians would be advanced search and filter features.
This would allow the ability to refine your search by searching within both general and specific fields. So being able to search for a document knowing it relates to psychology or history, but also being able to further refine the search such as refining a search for a history document in the context of the history of WWII. Other filters would include specific authors, time period of creation, country of origin for the document, as well as format (e.g. a document, a photo, an audio file, etc.)
Metadata is data that provides information on other data. This includes information such as the file’s size, format, author, date created, and date last edited. However it is not limited to this information, and can provide further information such as the specific version of the document, keywords, relation to other documents, etc.
Meta data is so crucial as it provides a structural foundation for identification of historical documents. It also helps in the administrative tracking of documents, as well as it can help in creating statistical data on documents.A few simple examples of the complications of digitization are:
– File Format: Simply because a digital copy is made of something does not guarantee that the file format will always be easily accessible. Nor does it guarantee the file will not eventually become corrupted, or deleted/destroyed somehow.
– Physical Elements: A digital copy will sometimes not contain information such as the type of paper or ink used, markings or stains on the pages, an audio file will not contain the anecdotal notes written on the CD case, etc.
– Cost: The monetary cost of the equipment and labour needed to create digital copies. The information might be considered so niche, that it is not deemed as cost-effective to digitize.
– Quality: A scan of a document can have discolouration or a fold which cuts off information, a video can have too low resolution, etc.
I think a good history website succeeds in three areas:
1. Collecting all relevant and accurate historical information, as well as providing other relevant images, videos, and materials.
2. Presenting that collected information with a clear timeline and concise explanation of the importance of the events (both in the events effect on the past, present, and future).
3. The website is designed in a way to be easy to access and read, with foresight on future readers; so avoiding clutter, specific language, and/or unnecessary gimmicks that will contribute to the website becoming quickly outdated.
Simply: accuracy, relevancy, efficiency, organization, and accessibility.
I specifically left out creativity. That is not to say innovation shouldn’t be attempted or sought after, or that using existing tools in creative ways should be frowned upon, only that those notions be tempered and kept within the frame of mind of making the website more efficient (whether that be through organization or making the information more accessible). If too much focus is placed on the creative aspect then the website runs the risk of becoming more like an art-project, or a novel gimmick that will appear as outdated within a handful of years, rather than a credible, efficient, and accessible tool for information.I took this course largely due to the description mentioning it touches upon public history, Professor Bonnell’s HIST 1040 was one of the most interesting classes I’ve taken at York. Additionally, studying how technology changes scholarship really appeals to me as I’ve always enjoyed studying technology. Less so from an engineering standpoint and more so from a historical and sociological standpoint. Technology’s impact on society and culture, and the resulting change it brings to different fields — how it transforms them and makes them become increasingly more interdisciplinary — has always fascinated me.
I’m hoping to learn more about the advantages and disadvantages advancing tech brings to scholarship, the new difficulties and dangers it introduces, as well as how public digital archives present and separate information (separating truth and fact from misinformation and propaganda, how to present it all clearly so it won’t require constant revision, etc.).
