On Saturday March 31, 2018, I enjoyed a daytrip to Prince Edward County, Ontario, an island on the north shore of Lake Ontario, about 2.5 hours drive east of Toronto (thanks to Fun Tours). The main attraction was rare access to two waterfalls on private property, provided as a fundraiser by the Rotary Club of Picton: …
What is Blockchain Technology?
Have you heard the term blockchain and wondered what it meant? It’s a brilliant concept when explained properly, and Stephen Sawyer of Narritiv (an innovation lab created by Access Copyright) explained it properly, in a recent Special Libraries Association (SLA) Toronto Chapter seminar on “Blockchain Technology & Smart Contracts.” Stephen began by discussing Bitcoin, the first …
Explore These 10 Superb London History Digital Collections
Warning: if you’re a London enthusiast, this post may sidetrack your day. A previous blog post was primarily about digital collections of London in images (photographs, prints, drawings, etc.). This post looks at the wider world of digital collections about London, including maps, in ten outstanding examples. As a parameter, I’ve included only collections that do not …
Exploring Digital Collections About London
Starting to explore an amazing digital collection is like falling into a black hole. Or a time warp. In a good way. This month I’m taking an online professional development class on managing special image collections and starting digitization programs. In the first week, we examined the user interfaces of various digital collections. Searching for …
London in an Edwardian Guidebook
Step back in time 110 years. You’re visiting London, England, in 1908, maybe for the first time. You want to know everything. Luckily you have a guidebook with you. Beyond the opening hours of the British Museum and the location of Sir Christopher Wren’s tombstone in St. Paul’s Cathedral, what is your guidebook telling you …
Top Tweets from GLAMs (Galleries, Libraries, Archives, and Museums) Summit 2018
In frigid Toronto, on January 30, 2018, a beautifully organized Summit for Canadian Galleries, Libraries, Archives and Museums (GLAMs) was hosted by Library and Archives Canada, the Canadian Museums Association, and the Ottawa Declaration Working Group. I was thrilled to attend, representing The Ontario Historical Society. It was an extraordinary event, filled with insights from top …
Emergency Preparedness Tips
What would you do if you had to evacuate your home (or workplace) on very short notice? What would you take with you, and how could you prepare in advance? Or what if you had to manage without electricity, using supplies on hand? Would you be ready? Last week Donna Clark of the City of …
10 Tips from the AAO Workshop on Research Methods for Genealogy and Local History
I was lucky to have the opportunity to attend the Archives Association of Ontario’s (AAO) recent workshop on Research Methods for Genealogy and Local History, held at the Archives of Ontario in Toronto. The full-day workshop was intended to guide information professionals on how to support their users’ genealogical and local history research needs. Working with …
In Defence of History on TV
Like many people, I love watching history on television. Bring on the Lucy Worsleys, the David Starkeys, the Tony Robinsons, Dan Snows, Michael Woods, Simon Schamas (especially the Simon Schamas), and the Horrible Histories too. The medium does have its downsides, including potentially invoking the stereotypical Famous Historian in the 1975 film Monty Python and the …
How Does the Ontario Government Work?
… or Who Does What, Who’s Who, and What’s Going On? Working with a not-for-profit funded in part by the provincial government, I’ve learned how important it is to (attempt to) understand How Things Work, including Who Does What, Who’s Who, and generally What’s Going On. Living away from Ontario for quite a while, though, I’ve …