Week 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24

Week 1: Introduction to Course

September 6, 2018

Week 2: What is Digital History?

September 13, 2018

Discussion

Open-Access Readings (Required):

Lab

Welcome to WordPress!:

  • Register account at http://digitalhist.com, if you have not already
  • Update user profile and set nickname to [firstnamelastname]
  • Create a sample post: [name] Test Post
  • Review all sections of WISIWYG editor
    • Text entry field
    • Publish
    • Categories
    • Tags
    • Featured Image
  • Assignment – Write test post:
    • Write four sentences in text editor explaining why you took this course and something about yourself
    • Format some of the text to be bold, italics, and underline
    • Start a bullet-point list of your favourite three courses that you have taken
    • Create a footnote for the following citaiton:

      Kheraj, Sean. “Restoring Nature: Ecology, Memory, and the Storm History of Vancouver’s Stanley Park” Canadian Historical Review 88, no. 4 (2007): 577-612.
    • Highlight the title of the article in the footnote and create a hyperlink to that article on the Web
    • Save a historical image from Library and Archives Canada
    • Embed the image into your test post
    • Write a caption using this format: [Title], [Year]. Source: [photographer, if known], [Archive], [File number]
    • Link the image to its original source page on LAC website
    • Search YouTube for any video from Library and Archives Canada
    • Embed video into your test post

Week 3: History on the Web

September 20, 2018

Discussion

Open-Access Readings (Required):

Lab

Evaluating History on the Web:

Week 4: Making a Website

September 27, 2018

Discussion

Open-Access Readings (Required):

Lab

Building a Website:

  • Build a website with your partner for your project pitch
  • What genre of website will you develop?
  • What features will you require?
  • Who is your audience?
  • Review four free website development services:
  • Select a service that best suits your project pitch
  • Sign-up for an account with your service and set up a website
  • Select theme or template
  • Write an “About” page for your website
  • Assignment: Post a link to your about page as a blog post with the title “[Names of all lab partners] About Page Link”

Week 5: Open Access and Copyright

October 4, 2018

Discussion

Open-Access Readings (Required):

Lab

The Creative Commons:

  • Visit and review Creative Commons website
  • Listen to Creative Commons music on CCMixter
  • Find a Creative Commons image on Flickr
  • Assignment: Select a Creative Commons license and add embedded license on your project pitch website

Week 6: Podcasting the Past

October 18, 2018

Discussion

Open-Access Readings (required):

Lab

Make a Podcast:

  • Record a five-minute discussion with your lab partner about your project pitch
    • Audio recording tools: handheld digital audio recorder; GarageBand or Audacity on a laptop PC; Skype recorder; iPhone or Android audio recording app (Hi-Q MP3 Voice Recorder on Android or Voice Memo App on iOS); Zencastr on a laptop PC
  • Edit audio using Audacity or other audio editing tool of your choice to include intro and closing music from a Creative Commons source (Jamendo, CCMixter, or other)
  • Export edited audio as Ogg Vorbis file
  • [Optional]: Install LAME MP3 Encoder and export audio as MP3 file
  • Upload audio to an online audio storage service (archive.org or SoundCloud)
  • Write RSS feed for your podcast:
  • Assignment: Write blog post on our course website featuring your audio file. Use an audio player in your post. The post should also explain your methodology for creating your podcast, including a list of software and tools. Paste the XML code for your podcast at the bottom of your post.

Alternative Challenge Lab:

  • Complete the same assignment above, but record, edit, and publish your podcast entirely in a Web browser
  • Recording tool: Zencastr
  • Editing tool: Bear Audio Editor
  • Publishing tool: Internet Archive
  • Assignment: Write blog post on our course website featuring your audio file. Use an audio player in your post. The post should also explain your methodology for creating your podcast, including a list of software and tools. Paste the XML code for your podcast at the bottom of your post.

Alternative Challenge Lab:

  • Complete the same assignment above, but instead livestream and record a video podcast of discussion of your project pitch on YouTube or other service
  • Edit your video to include a title card, credits, and music
  • Assignment: Write blog post on our course website featuring a recording of your livestream video podcast. Embed the video in your post. The post should also explain your methodology for creating your video podcast, including a list of software and tools.

Week 7: The Digitization Challenge I

October 25, 2018

Discussion

Open-Access Readings (Required)

Field Trip to Archives

  • Meet at Clara Thomas Archives at 2:30pm (Scott Library, room 305)
  • You cannot use pens in the archives and food and drink are not permitted
  • There is a secure area at the archives to store your bags
  • Download Camscanner for iPhone or iPad or Android to scan documents in archives

Week 8: The Digitization Challenge II

November 1, 2018

Discussion

Open-Access Readings (Required)

Lab

Digitizing Documents

  • Select a sample historical document for digitization
  • Photograph document
  • Use image editing software to crop document and save as TIFF, 300 dpi and JPEG
  • Use Adobe Acrobat to compile your TIFF images into a single PDF or use JPG to PDF online converter
  • Run Adobe Acrobat text recognition (OCR) on your file and save a copy as .txt (compare to PDF and correct errors)
  • Or use OCR.Space to extract text and save as .txt (compare to PDF and correct errors)
  • Or manually transcribe your file as .txt
  • Create at least three metadata tags to describe your document using tags in WordPress
  • Assignment: Write blog post featuring a thumbnail of your digitized document (as JPEG image), a link to download the PDF, transcript, source info, and metadata tags

Week 9: Search

November 8, 2018

***Digital History Project Proposals Due***

Discussion

Open-Access Readings (Required)

Lab

Critical Analysis of Search Tools

  • Select two from the following list of search tools for historical research:
  • Generate a list of search terms for a project on the history of the American Revolution
  • Use your search terms in two of the tools above and make use of the various advanced options in your search
  • Generate a list of five relevant primary and/or scholarly secondary sources on the history of the American Revolution for each search tool
  • Assignment: Write a 500-600 word comparative review of your two search tools as a blog post and include your list of search terms and your list of sources found

Week 10: Project Pitches 1

November 15, 2018

Lab partners will give presentations on project pitches

  • Review proposal websites

Week 11: Project Pitches 2

November 22, 2018

Remaining lab partners will give presentations on project pitches

  • Review proposal websites

Week 12: Project Management and Planning

November 29, 2018

Discussion

Open-Access Readings (Required):

Lab

Managing a Group Project with Basecamp

  • Meet with your project team and exchange contact info
  • Based on project proposal, discuss roles for the project
  • Join your Basecamp group by accepting invitation
  • Develop your project work plan:
    • Review and revise project timeline from pitch and add to milestone goals as separate “To-Do” lists in Basecamp
    • Include a “To-Do” milestone for the December break with realistic, manageable goals
  • Start at least one “Message Board” discussion on a relevant topic to your project

Week 13: Preserving the Past Online

January 3, 2019

Discussion

Open-Access Readings (Required):

Lab

Open Lab

  • Meet with project team
  • Review Schedule and To-Dos in Basecamp
  • Proceed with project work

Week 14: Wikipedia I

January 10, 2019

Discussion

Open-Access Readings (Required):

Lab

Introduction to the Wikipedia Project and Practicing the Basics

  • Create a Wikipedia account and enroll in this assignment here
  • Complete “Introduction to Wikipedia” and training modules

Week 15: Wikipedia II

January 17, 2019

Lab

Adding to a Wikipedia Article

  • Login to Wikipedia assignment
  • Complete “Evaluating Articles and Adding Citations” and training modules
  • With your lab partner use the “Citation Hunt” tool to find an article in need of a citation
  • Find an appropriate citation and add it to the article or make an edit that corrects the information
  • Add an explanation of your edit in the “edit summary” before publishing
  • Write a blog post that explains the edit that you made and provides a link to the Wikipedia article (up to 500 words) – one post per pair of lab partners

Week 16: Analyzing Digital History I

January 24, 2019

Discussion

Open-Access Readings (Required):

Lab

Intro to Text Analysis

  • Use http://voyant-tools.org/ to analyze one of the following documents:
  • Download a copy of one of the above documents
  • Upload your document to Voyant Tools
  • Use features and tools to adjust stopwords
  • Create png visualizations for your document
  • Assignment:
    • Write a blog post featuring your png visualizations and your analysis of the findings (~500 words)
    • List any stopwords you added and why
    • What did this form of “distant reading” reveal about your document?

Week 17: Analyzing Digital History II

January 31, 2019

Discussion

Open-Access Readings (Required):

Lab

Using the Historian’s Macroscope

  • Explore Google NGram Viewer 
  • For more on the Google Books project and the NGram Viewer, see: Michel, Jean-Baptiste, Yuan Kui Shen, Aviva P. Aiden, Adrian Veres, Matthew K. Gray, The Google Books Team, Joseph P. Pickett, et al. “Quantitative analysis of culture using millions of digitized books” Science 331(6014 ) 2011: 176-182.
  • Use this tool to develop two historical insights
  • Create visualizations for your insights
  • Assignment:
    • Present your insights to class
    • Presentation must include visual evidence

Week 18: Gaming and Simulations

February 7, 2019

Discussion

Open-Access Readings (Required):

Lab

Creating a Game Design Document

  • Create an account at Dundoc.com
  • Have one lab partner create a new project
  • Select the Quick Start template “Starter 1”
  • Delete all but the “Game Introduction” secton
  • Complete the “Game Introduction” section including,
    • General Overview
    • Genre
    • GamePlay
    • Target audience and platforms
    • Look and feel
    • Story
    • How to Play
  • Go to “Settings” and add a Project Image
  • Go to “Settings” and set project to “public: link only”
  • Write blog post (250 words) with a short description of your game and include an active link to your game design document

Week 19: Photogrammetry and Virtual Reality

February 14, 2019

Discussion

Open-Access Readings (Required):

Lab

Photogrammetry

  • Download Trnio for iOS (phone or tablet)
  • Create account on SketchFab
  • Scan an object using Trnio and upload your scan to SketchFab
  • Assignment: Create a blog post (500 words) describing your process of scanning a 3D object using Trinio and embed your 3D object from SketchFab in your post

Week 20: Virtual Reality Workshop

February 28, 2019

Discussion

Lab

Spherical Photography

Week 21: Mobile Computing and Augmented Reality

March 7, 2019

Discussion

Open-Access Readings (Required):

Lab

Rephotography

  • Select and download a historical photograph of York University from either:
  • Create an account at WhatWasThere.com
  • Upload your historical photo to WhatWasThere.com, pin it to the location where the photo was taken and align it in Google Streetview
  • Write a lab report that includes:
    • Citation for your historical photograph (archive, collection, title, year)
    • Link to your historical photo on WhatWasThere.com
    • Up to 500-word reflection on the process of adding a historical photograph to WhatWasThere.com and how one could create a digital history project from this technology

Week 22: Spatial History

March 14, 2019

Discussion

Open-Access Readings (Required):

Lab

Making a Story Map

  • Create a public account on ArcGIS Online
  • Visit ArcGIS Story Maps
  • Create a new Story Map using the Basic template and follow the tutorial
  • Create a map of your York University experience
  • Add the following Map Notes:
    • At least 3 annotated pins (one with an image)
    • At least one annotated vector
    • At least one annotated line
  • Select “Share” and “Create a Web App”
  • Select “Build a Story Map” and “Story Map Cascade”
  • Create a Story Map Cascade and include:
    • Cover
    • Narrative
    • Immersive
    • Your map
    • Credits
  • Set your Story Map to public and share link on forum for this topic

Week 23: Public History and the Digital Divide

March 21, 2019

Discussion

Open-Access Readings (Required):

Lab

Open Lab

Week 24: Project Launch and Presentations

***Digital History Projects Due***

March 28, 2019

All groups will launch and present their projects

  • Class meets in History Common Room (Vari Hall 2183)