Brief presentation on

1. A history of digitization:
Dutch museums
Trilce Navarrete Hernandez
Adviser John Mackenzie Owen
ICG promovendie bijeenkomst 3 april 2013

2. 50 years in 15 minutes:
Why this research? Problem statement
Methodology
Findings
Navarrete - A history of digitization

3. What is a (digital) collection / a (digital) museum?
Navarrete - A history of digitization

4. What is a (digital) collection / a (digital) museum?
Why: digitization has brought an adjustment to raison d’être and modus
operandi. Institutions (and policy makers) are not clear on the effects of
past digital practice on (future) digital collections
Research question: What processes have Dutch museums
followed to adopt information technologies and how are
these reflected in the digital museum?
Navarrete - A history of digitization

5. Definitions / limitations
Digitization: adoption and adaptation of computers to the work process.
Involves the use of digital means and results in an organizational
transformation. A digital museum has fully adopted digitization.
Digital collection: information about collections (digitized, born-digital).
Includes data as well as the information system. Data can be text, image,
video, sound. Information systems contain structures (e.g. thesauri).
Population: Dutch museums (ca. 810). Most data available is from
National museums (30), misrepresenting municipal, local and private
museums. Case studies allowed deeper information access and analysis.
Historic review: starts with the ‘first digitization subsidy’ (1969) and ends
in 2013. First national history of digitization (in the world). Focus on
museum sector but can inform other sectors.
Navarrete - A history of digitization

6. The research object: the digital collection
OCW
OCW
EU
EU
Policy
Policy The digital collection is formed
in response to three main
forces: the museum providing
the core collection, the policy
makers, and the private
Museum
Museum consumer.
M
M Each provides and receives
from participating in its making.
The relations can be seen
Visitor
Visitor
changing in time.
Navarrete - A history of digitization

7. The research project: two dimensions
Policy
Policy Technology
Technology
Museum
Museum +
Financing
Financing
Visitor
Visitor
University
University
Historic
Historic
review
review
Maritime
Maritime
Literature
Literature Case studies
Case studies
Economic
Economic review
review Art //
Art
theory
theory History
History
Information
Information
Science
Science Natural History //
Natural History
Science
Science
History
History
Future
Future
trends
trends
Ethnographic
Ethnographic
Navarrete - A history of digitization

8. The findings
Adoption depends on interpretation
Adoption depends on interpretation
Benefits of being in the Network
Benefits of being in the Network
Communication with the public changes
Communication with the public changes
New set of definitions
New set of definitions
Navarrete - A history of digitization

9. The findings
Adoption depends on interpretation
Adoption depends on interpretation
Museums encountered computers about 50 years ago. Computers were
used as a tool for administration (inventory), now computers permeate
work in the entire organization. It used to be about automating a process,
now it is about being digital.
SCOT Social Construction of Technology supports analysis in history:
Interpretation and social positioning influences how technology is adapted,
and adopted. For that, history must look at successes as well as failures.
We appear to be at a closure moment, we agree computers are about
being connected in a network of information.
Navarrete - A history of digitization

10. The findings
Adoption depends on the Network
Adoption depends in interpretation
Benefits of being on the Network
Benefits of being in interpretation
Museums used to work in isolation. Digitization has led to the formation of
networks. Networks have benefits and disadvantages.
Network theory serves to explain this:
Disadvantages: they can be restrictive once the standard has been
chosen. Leads to winner takes all, reducing variety.
Benefits: grows with number of members (n2-n = a network of 10 has a
value of 100).
The new value of museums depends on their ability to be part of the
network, with higher value to those that serve as nodes.
Navarrete - A history of digitization

11. The findings
Communication with on interpretation
Adoption depends on public changes
Communication withthe interpretation
Adoption depends the public changes
The visitor used to depend on the museum to see the collections.
Digitization allows the museum to satisfy the information need of the visitor
(e.g. using Google). This has represented a fundamental change in the
way museums position themselves in society (raison d’être).
Information science provides a communication model with key selection
moments that determine the qualities of an exchange:
The producer (museum) selects what to produce and how to distribute in
the information market (the Internet). The consumer (visitor) selects what
to use: the right information, in the format, in the right amount, at the right
time (ideally free).
Selection from the visitor gives value to digitization
Navarrete - A history of the museum information.

12. The findings
Adoption dependsdefinitions
Adoption dependson interpretation
New set of definitions
New set of on interpretation
The relevance of museums depends on their response to the networked
market of information. It is not about using computers but about being
digital:
Changing the work process taking advantage of the new tool, opening the
communication channels letting the visitor in, revising the concept of a
collection including the digital side, expanding the borders of the museum
being enrich by other information sources, reinventing the role in society
positioning themselves as nodes, allowing their main asset (information) to
flourish sharing with the network.
Museum
Museum Technology
Technology Digital
Digital
www
Museum
Museum
www
Navarrete - A history of digitization

13. Thank you !
Ideas ? Comments ? Questions ?
Navarrete - A history of digitization