I've just posted this on
http://electronicmuseum.org.uk/2009/03/04/creative-spaces-justwhy/ 
#comment-7770
- but to keep this on the list, I'm also copying here

So much information - so little time… I have been led here by the mcn  
list discussion about Creative Spaces and then bounced back and forth  
between various blogs, tweets and websites. Never mind the occasional  
intemperance - it just shows what riches a bit of passion can bring  
forth.

In my view we should now focus on how we move forward - maximising  
the value of the resources that we have created. The key phrases for  
the non-techie like myself are “improve metadata”, “understand search  
technology”, “resolve copyright issues” and please let’s have some  
common standards of research into “what users actually want and do”.  
Clearly, in our sector, funder requirements are key. Comparable  
projects in the commercial world have to be user-driven or they die -  
surely funders now need to follow this line and be far more specific  
about the management reports that they require from projects so that  
everyone’s desire to research the real value of these resources can  
be more efficiently monitored and evaluated. Commercial projects  
aren’t likely to share this kind of research - it would threaten  
their business models. The cultural heritage community should have  
every reason in the world to share their user research and findings.  
“Creative Spaces” and the myriad of other projects are a terrific  
beginning. We now need not only the ‘About’ pages that George has  
requested but also some beautifully-presented pages that will help  
the funders, and the collection managers and directors, clearly see  
how users are interacting with the information. Instead of this, I  
see acres of speculation…… We now have a fantastic fund of people who  
are clearly able to produce this information and present it  
beautifully, given the right direction. And this information can then  
drive the policies.

This has been a fascinating discussion with some really golden  
nuggets of information and many inspirational ideas. Anyone who wants  
to get a glimpse of how difficult it must have been to create  
“Creative Spaces” should check out Giv’s heartfelt blog at http:// 
www.givp.org/2009/02/09/its-not-always-about-the-technology/ and if  
you haven’t seen it already check out their YouTube contribution at  
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I3WJZreYF18 . This at least gives you  
their version of ‘Why?’ - and reflects the views of all the museum  
community online websites that I have come into contact with (many….).

As a consultant, I have spent a great deal of my own time this last  
few years just keeping up with the fast pace of developments in the  
areas of metadata improvement, search technology, and copyright  
issues. I don’t see the same thing happening with user analysis  
(although surely this cannot be true of the education sector). So, if  
its out there, let’s hear about it.

In this respect, a major disadvantage of cultural as opposed to  
commercial projects is the short term goals that funded projects  
have. Digitise the content, create a website (or portal), and that’s  
it. Too many funded projects create workflows and processes that  
actually inhibit sharing and integration of these resources. Projects  
like “Creative Spaces” and, yes, the European Digital Library  
(Europeana) are opportunities for research that can allow us to look  
back into the content and resolve most of the issues raised in these  
discussions. Let’s focus on harvesting the hidden values and insist  
on short term projects conforming to long term goals that are  
measured by common standards. Facts not opinions. Measurement not  
uninformed judgment.

I’m assuming you all agree….. (not that opinions and uninformed  
judgments aren’t a lot of fun of course…). Without some more  
attractive, user-friendly, hard information we’re never going to be  
able to persuade the ‘powers-that-be’ of the value.
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