The idea for a personalized archival service came to us more than a decade ago, while sitting in a library archive looking through the English Short Title Catalogue. At the time, in the mid-1990s, the contents of the Catalogue were not available in digital form, which meant that we spent the better part of five years in front of a microfilm reader.
This was also a time when digital archival methods were rapidly developing, and we realized, in a very direct way, that the method for storing information has a profound effect on the way that information is used, or, in our case, not used. And, we believe, the implications of this digital archival revolution for your own personal historical documents is no less profound. Put simply, you will begin to access and interact with material, often very meaningful material, which had previously collected dust under your bed or in the storage bin.
We will be introducing additional details about the service over the coming months. We will also be releasing our first case study, one family's stunning stamp collection accumulated over three generations. If, in the meantime, you would like additional information or have other questions, please send us an email: unmethod@gmail.com.
1 — Catalogue all material, which includes original research, if necessary, to better categorize, periodize and otherwise organize your information.
2 — Convert all information into digital format, through high-resolution scanning and/or digital video conversion.
3 — Create a searchable database of all digitized information, including text, images-2 or video. We use the popular, open source MySQL database management system, which means that your data are internet ready from the outset.
4 — Store all data on archival media to safeguard your information for future generations. We offer multiple back-up options, from DVD-R media to online storage.
5 — Build a custom designed Wordpress application for viewing your material, both on and offline. If you choose to publish your information online, we will design a fully functional website to display your newly digitized information, information that you can then share with the world.
