[Archivesspace_Users_Group] ArchivesSpace Update - April 2017

Mon Apr 10 09:35:52 EDT 2017

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April 2017 Update

Development

We are pleased to announce that a release candidate - v2.0.0-RC1 (https://github.com/archivesspace/archivesspace/releases/tag/v2.0.0-RC1) - is available for download and testing purposes. Version 2.0.0 of ArchivesSpace will be a major release, with many changes to the underlying technologies of the application as well as improved functionality in some key areas. Summary information about these changes is available at the release notes accompanying the release candidate. The changes include upgrading to Rails 5, better performance for background jobs and larger databases, a new way to reorder components in resources and digital objects, and remediation of issues with reports.  By default, this file will use the current public interface for ArchivesSpace. This release candidate features substantial work from our development partner, Hudson Molonglo (HM), as well as contributions from community members.

Public User Interface (PUI)

The release notes indicate that the new public interface beta is available if you/your system administrator make a change to an environmental variable. Instructions for doing so are in the release notes. Because the new public interface is a beta (i.e. not ready for production use) and is still being actively worked on in order to get as much of the requested functionality into it as possible by the June full release, you should not change this setting on your production server, even if you are not currently using the public interface. This is essentially a sneak preview of major functionality and we look forward to your feedback. The beta includes many of the most complex elements of this work, and more functionality, including the ability to print records to PDF, will be included in the June release. The new public interface reflects tireless work in this area led by Mark Custer of Yale University, and features input from our member working group participants and web firm Cherry Hill Company (who worked with the group in 2015), as well as development by HM (largely funded by Yale) and Harvard developers. Details on this work, including the wireframes and functionality that are guiding the development phase of this work, are available at https://archivesspace.atlassian.net/wiki/display/ADC/Public+Interface+Enhancement+Project.

Testing and Feedback

We are collecting feedback on the release candidate until April 12. Please email Program Manager Christine Di Bella (christine.dibella at lyrasis.org<mailto:christine.dibella at lyrasis.org>) if you encounter any issues. We will determine an exact release date for 2.0.0 when we are confident in the testing results, but hope that it will follow on quickly from the feedback deadline.

Please let us know if you experience any problems. If you use this release candidate with your own data, please note that a full index is required. Also, please note that running reports requires a MySQL database backend. You will not be able to run reports with the embedded database.

Resolution Honoring Bradley Westbrook, Founding ArchivesSpace Program Manager

The ArchivesSpace Governance Board recently approved a resolution honoring Bradley Westbrook, ArchivesSpace's founding program manager and longtime leader in archival information management. The text of the resolution was presented to him in February, and is as follows:

Whereas, for more than a decade Bradley Westbrook has been a visionary leader in meeting the needs of the archival community for archival management software, including his central role in the genesis of the Archivists Toolkit, which later merged into ArchivesSpace;

Whereas, Bradley Westbrook has been a tireless major contributor to the development of ArchivesSpace from its inception;

Whereas, Bradley Westbrook served as the founding Program Manager of the new ArchivesSpace membership organization, uniting the archival community in a common enterprise to sustain, enhance and help each other to use the ArchivesSpace software;

BE IT RESOLVED, that the ArchivesSpace Board of Governors expresses its deepest gratitude and appreciation to Bradley Westbrook and commends him for his singular vision, leadership and dedication in the creation of ArchivesSpace and its sustaining membership organization.

We thank Brad for all his many contributions to our community and for his singular vision in making ArchivesSpace a reality.

We're Hiring!

LYRASIS is hiring for an ArchivesSpace Community Engagement Coordinator. Reporting to the Program Manager, the Community Engagement Coordinator will be on the frontlines of the program, helping ArchivesSpace users get as much as possible out of the application and bringing our community together. The position will be especially focused on user support, outreach, communications, training, user documentation, and testing.

The full listing is available on the LYRASIS website at https://www.lyrasis.org/job/Pages/LYRASIS-Positions.aspx. Those interested in the position should apply by submitting a cover letter and resume to human.resources at lyrasis.org. Priority consideration will be given to applications received by April 21.

Nominations for ArchivesSpace Governance Groups

Calls for nominations for openings on the ArchivesSpace Governance Board, User Advisory Council (UAC), and Technical Advisory Council (TAC) with terms beginning in July 2017 were recently announced. ArchivesSpace members from institutions in the Large, Medium, and Very Small categories are eligible for consideration for the Governance Board election, and members from institutions at all levels are eligible for openings on the UAC and TAC. Representatives of Registered Service Providers are also eligible for openings on the TAC.  More information on each call is available at:

Governance Board: http://lyralists.lyrasis.org/pipermail/archivesspace_users_group/2017-April/004664.html

User Advisory Council: http://lyralists.lyrasis.org/pipermail/archivesspace_users_group/2017-April/004662.html

Technical Advisory Council: http://lyralists.lyrasis.org/pipermail/archivesspace_users_group/2017-April/004663.html

Volunteers are the lifeblood of ArchivesSpace and we heartily thank all who serve and consider serving. Please submit nominations to Program Manager Christine Di Bella (christine.dibella at lyrasis.org<mailto:christine.dibella at lyrasis.org>) on behalf of the Nominating Committee by Friday, April 28, 9:00 p.m. EDT.

ArchivesSpace Member Forum 2017

The 2017 ArchivesSpace Member Forum will be held on Tuesday, July 25, at Portland State University. This event is open to all staff from ArchivesSpace member institutions and will feature a variety of opportunities to learn and share about all things ArchivesSpace. A call for speakers will be going out soon. Follow along, or make suggestions, at our wiki page at https://archivesspace.atlassian.net/wiki/display/ADC/ArchivesSpace+Member+Forum+2017.

Informal Registry of Consultants

The ArchivesSpace program occasionally gets requests for consulting and other services. Often this is for people who don't want hosting, but need help installing the application, migrating data from a legacy database like Filemaker or a homegrown system, customized training, or custom interface work. While the ArchivesSpace program manages a training program that provides instruction to groups, it can be difficult to keep up with the demand for these kinds of individualized requests, especially when people need onsite services.

We'd like to maintain an informal registry of individuals interested in providing consulting services related to ArchivesSpace. The consulting work itself would not be managed by the ArchivesSpace program - consultants and prospective clients would work out any details about the scope of work, deliverables, and compensation amongst themselves. The registry would just be a handy way to gather information about people available to provide services and direct those who are interested to them.

If you know of someone, or are interested in this yourself, please email Christine. It would be useful to get the following information:

*         Location

*         Services

*         Experience with ArchivesSpace

*         Best way for prospective clients to get in touch with you and/or see examples of your work

(Affiliation with an ArchivesSpace member institution is not required for an individual to be listed in the registry.)

For companies and other larger efforts, we have a Registered Service Provider program with additional benefits. Information about the current program is available at http://archivesspace.org/registered-service-providers/why-and-how-to-become-an-rsp/.

Membership Update

Our new members since March 6 include:

*         Amistad Research Center (Louisiana)

*         Connecticut College

*         Dakota State University (South Dakota)

*         Escondido Public Library (California)

*         Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art (Missouri)

*         Shippensburg University (Pennsylvania)

*         University of Hawaii - West O'ahu

*         William Way LGBT Community Center (Pennsylvania)

As of April 10, we have 329 General members, 12 Educational Program members, and 3 Registered Service Providers. If you are interested in your institution becoming a member of ArchivesSpace, please email us at ArchivesSpaceHome at lyrasis.org<mailto:ArchivesSpaceHome at lyrasis.org> for more information.

Connect with ArchivesSpace in Person

Christine, along with Madeline Sheldon of LYRASIS Digital Technology Services and Mary Meyer, LYRASIS Member Outreach Librarian for the Northeast, will be at the Spring meeting of the Mid-Atlantic Regional Archivists Conference in Newark on April 21. Please visit us in the exhibitor area if you have questions or want to chat about your ArchivesSpace experience or if you want to learn more about LYRASIS services.

ArchivesSpace monthly updates provide news about ArchivesSpace community and program activities and are sent to our member listservs, the ArchivesSpace Google Group, and SAA's Collection Management Tools roundtable listserv, as well as being posted on the ArchivesSpace website. Please feel free to share this update with people you know who have an interest in ArchivesSpace but may not be on one of these lists.

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