<div dir="ltr"><div>We just bit the bullet and renumbered ~6,000 boxes last Fall. It was absolutely worth it, since non-unique box numbers in collections constantly require weird workarounds. No more researchers having to specify which of the 120 different box 1s in a collection is what they're actually looking for.</div><div><br></div><div>If anyone is interested in the workflows and associated python script we came up with to carry this out without significantly disrupting collection use, feel free to contact me.</div><div><br></div><div>All the best,</div><div><br></div><div>Dan<br></div></div><br><div class="gmail_quote"><div dir="ltr" class="gmail_attr">On Wed, Aug 2, 2023 at 11:10 AM Hand, Sarit <<a href="mailto:shand@ap.org">shand@ap.org</a>> wrote:<br></div><blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="margin:0px 0px 0px 0.8ex;border-left:1px solid rgb(204,204,204);padding-left:1ex"><div class="msg-1792049671593826898">
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<p class="MsoNormal">Hi,<u></u><u></u></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><u></u> <u></u></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">We have similar scenarios.<u></u><u></u></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Because you can create multiple top containers with the same indicator without getting an error, items in collections were randomly labeled with different top containers but with the same indicator. That’s been an ongoing clean up job.<u></u><u></u></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><u></u> <u></u></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To alleviate this, I did not create complex top container names because our physical boxes already had labels with their box indicators which were simple digits, 1, 2,3 or even 01, 02 03, etc. (also not consistent); instead, I used the
barcode field and put the collection, series, and box info there. We were not using barcodes at the time. It helped immensely since that meant I did not have to relabel the physical boxes with new box numbers etc. but allowed be to distinguish between Box
1 for series 1 and Box 1 for series 2 and so on.<u></u><u></u></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><u></u> <u></u></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">However, we just started using barcodes, which in effect will still help to distinguish the separate top containers, just won’t have the collection data in there. The downside of creating Box indicators and/or barcodes using collection
data is if you must store content from multiple resources in the same top container then the data will not make sense. The downside of using generic barcode numbers is that it is not informative, its just a random set of characters.<u></u><u></u></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><u></u> <u></u></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Bottom line, I use the barcode field to distinguish top containers with the same indicator in a resource whether it has collection info or not.<u></u><u></u></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><u></u> <u></u></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10pt">Cheers,</span><u></u><u></u></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:red"><img style="width: 0.6354in; height: 0.7291in;" id="m_-1792049671593826898Picture_x0020_3" src="cid:189b79380f95b16b21" width="61" height="70"></span>
<span style="font-size:9pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:red"><img style="width: 0.9062in; height: 0.4791in;" id="m_-1792049671593826898Picture_x0020_4" src="cid:189b79380f96917eb2" width="87" height="46"></span><u></u><u></u></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10pt">Sarit Hand <span style="color:rgb(50,49,48)">200 Liberty St.</span></span><u></u><u></u></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10pt">Digital Archivist <span style="color:rgb(50,49,48)">New York, NY 10281</span></span><u></u><u></u></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10pt">Corporate Archives <span style="color:rgb(50,49,48)">T 212.621.7035</span></span><u></u><u></u></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10pt"> </span><u></u><u></u></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10pt"><br>
<a href="mailto:shand@ap.org" target="_blank">shand@ap.org</a> </span><u></u><u></u></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="http://www.ap.org" target="_blank"><span style="font-size:10pt;color:blue">www.ap.org</span></a><u></u><u></u></p>
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<div style="border-color:rgb(225,225,225) currentcolor currentcolor;border-style:solid none none;border-width:1pt medium medium;padding:3pt 0in 0in">
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>From:</b> <a href="mailto:archivesspace_users_group-bounces@lyralists.lyrasis.org" target="_blank">archivesspace_users_group-bounces@lyralists.lyrasis.org</a> <<a href="mailto:archivesspace_users_group-bounces@lyralists.lyrasis.org" target="_blank">archivesspace_users_group-bounces@lyralists.lyrasis.org</a>>
<b>On Behalf Of </b>Bowers, Kate A.<br>
<b>Sent:</b> Tuesday, August 1, 2023 11:45 AM<br>
<b>To:</b> Archivesspace Users Group <<a href="mailto:archivesspace_users_group@lyralists.lyrasis.org" target="_blank">archivesspace_users_group@lyralists.lyrasis.org</a>><br>
<b>Subject:</b> Re: [Archivesspace_Users_Group] Managing Unique Top Containers<u></u><u></u></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><u></u> <u></u></p>
<p><span style="font-size:9pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:red">[EXTERNAL]<u></u><u></u></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal">We have an enormous number of legacy collections where the container numbering has similar issues. Fortunately (or because of this) we are not trying to use AS as our system of record for locations or container management.<u></u><u></u></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><u></u> <u></u></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">The best solution we found with ArchivesSpace is to repeat the entire text of the container identifier in the “indicator” field of the top container. For example:<u></u><u></u></p>
<ul style="margin-top:0in" type="disc">
<li class="m_-1792049671593826898MsoListParagraph" style="margin-left:0in">HUGFP 26.10 Box 1<u></u><u></u></li></ul>
<ul style="margin-top:0in" type="disc">
<ul style="margin-top:0in" type="circle">
<li class="m_-1792049671593826898MsoListParagraph" style="margin-left:0in">HUGFP 26 being the collection identifier, .10 being the series identifier, and Box 1 being the container number<u></u><u></u></li></ul>
</ul>
<ul style="margin-top:0in" type="disc">
<li class="m_-1792049671593826898MsoListParagraph" style="margin-left:0in">HUGFP 111.75 p Box 1<u></u><u></u></li></ul>
<ul style="margin-top:0in" type="disc">
<ul style="margin-top:0in" type="circle">
<li class="m_-1792049671593826898MsoListParagraph" style="margin-left:0in">(HUGFP 111 being the collection number, .75 being the series identifier, p being the container prefix, and Box 1 being the container number<u></u><u></u></li></ul>
</ul>
<p class="MsoNormal"><u></u> <u></u></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">This is, at least, accurate. It does make the public display weird in some places though.<u></u><u></u></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><u></u> <u></u></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">This is a legacy practice—we no longer assign series or sous-fonds numbers to portions of fonds or portions of collections that will be described in a single finding aid. For many institutional records, the description is at the sous-fonds
or series level. We will continue to have the problem with legacy collections, however.<u></u><u></u></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><u></u> <u></u></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Kate<u></u><u></u></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><u></u> <u></u></p>
<div style="border-color:rgb(225,225,225) currentcolor currentcolor;border-style:solid none none;border-width:1pt medium medium;padding:3pt 0in 0in">
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>From:</b> <a href="mailto:archivesspace_users_group-bounces@lyralists.lyrasis.org" target="_blank">
archivesspace_users_group-bounces@lyralists.lyrasis.org</a> <<a href="mailto:archivesspace_users_group-bounces@lyralists.lyrasis.org" target="_blank">archivesspace_users_group-bounces@lyralists.lyrasis.org</a>>
<b>On Behalf Of </b>Herbert Dittersdorf<br>
<b>Sent:</b> Tuesday, August 1, 2023 11:23 AM<br>
<b>To:</b> <a href="mailto:archivesspace_users_group@lyralists.lyrasis.org" target="_blank">archivesspace_users_group@lyralists.lyrasis.org</a><br>
<b>Subject:</b> [Archivesspace_Users_Group] Managing Unique Top Containers<u></u><u></u></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><u></u> <u></u></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal">Hello ArchiveSpace Community,<u></u><u></u></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><u></u> <u></u></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal">I was hoping to crowdsource a little wisdom about Top Containers and how you all manage them.<u></u><u></u></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><u></u> <u></u></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal">I am retooling the finding aid for the University of Maine's William S. Cohen Papers collection--a very large set of boxes (our largest). The collection contains multiple record groups, series, sub series, and sub-subseries. Boxes and files
have been associated with Top Containers successfully; however, the Top Container designations tend to be generic (e.g. "Box 1," "Box 2," "Box 3"...). This fact creates a problem: each "Box 1," "Box 2," "Box 3"... Top Container is linked with records from
disparate series and subseries.<u></u><u></u></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><u></u> <u></u></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal">For example, the following two folder titles are both linked under the same "Box 1" Top Container:<u></u><u></u></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><u></u> <u></u></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><img style="width: 5.125in; height: 0.7395in;" id="m_-1792049671593826898Picture_x0020_1" src="cid:189b79380f97745b43" width="492" height="71" border="0"><u></u><u></u></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal">One file comes from subseries, <i>2.1.5 Membership Files. </i>
The other file comes from the subseries, <i>3.4.4 Mailings.</i><u></u><u></u></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><u></u> <u></u></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal">Obviously the details do not matter here. I am simply wondering how others deal with similar problems. Generally:
<b>Is there a way to create unique top container instances with identical titles?
</b>Or do you all typically embed additional information in the "Top Container" title? <u></u><u></u></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><u></u> <u></u></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal">In the case of the example: Can I create two unique "Box 1" instances (one for the 2.1.5 subseries and the other for the 3.4.4 subseries) by editing the metadata for that Top Container in some way? Or is creating a longer "Top Container"
title (something like, "2.1.5 Box 1") the only way to solve this problem? <u></u><u></u></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><u></u> <u></u></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal">I am looking for an elegant way of solving this issue without creating long Top Container titles but could not find a way to do so using the Help Center. Even knowing, for sure, that I have to create longer titles would be very helpful. <u></u><u></u></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><u></u> <u></u></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal">Thank you so much and I apologize for clogging all of your inboxes with my question! <u></u><u></u></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><u></u> <u></u></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal">Sincerely,<u></u><u></u></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal">Herbie Dittersdorf<u></u><u></u></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span class="m_-1792049671593826898gmailsignatureprefix">-- </span><u></u><u></u></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:rgb(136,136,136)">Herbert Matthew Dittersdorf, M.S.I.<u></u><u></u></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:rgb(136,136,136)">Archivist, William S. Cohen Papers<u></u><u></u></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:rgb(136,136,136)">Special Collections Department<u></u><u></u></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:rgb(136,136,136)">5729 Fogler Library <u></u><u></u></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:rgb(136,136,136)">Orono, ME 04469-5729<u></u><u></u></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:rgb(136,136,136)">207.581.1844<u></u><u></u></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:rgb(136,136,136)"><u></u> <u></u></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:rgb(136,136,136)"><img style="width: 2.0833in; height: 0.6041in;" id="m_-1792049671593826898_x0000_i1025" src="https://umaine.edu/brand/wp-content/uploads/sites/213/2016/06/UMaine_fullcrest_logo_email_signature.jpg" width="200" height="58" border="0"></span><span style="color:rgb(136,136,136)"><u></u><u></u></span></p>
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</div></blockquote></div><br clear="all"><br><span class="gmail_signature_prefix">-- </span><br><div dir="ltr" class="gmail_signature"><div dir="ltr"><div><div dir="ltr"><div><div dir="ltr"><div><div dir="ltr"><div><div dir="ltr"><div>Dan Michelson</div><div>Collections Archivist<br></div><div>Smith College Special Collections</div><div><br></div><div><span><span style="font-family:Arial;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">For current library access and services details, see </span><a href="https://libraries.smith.edu/library-services-during-covid-19" target="_blank"><span style="font-family:Arial;background-color:transparent;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">Library Services During COVID-19</span></a><span style="font-family:Arial;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">.</span></span></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div>