Museums and the Web 2008
http://www.archimuse.com/mw2008/
or see us online at http://conference.archimuse.com/
Each year Museums and the Web recognises the best work in museum web
design and development in the Best of the Web competition. A panel of
judges reviews sites nominated by the community, and selects sites in
a number of categories.
Here are the winners. Congratulations to the sites named below (with
comments from the best of the web 2008 panel).
*Exhibition*
honourable mention
The Digital Vaults
http://www.digitalvaults.org
* a cool looking tool that immerses the user in documents and
images, thus connecting to the mission of the Archives.
* challenging and dynamic interface made me want to continue
clicking around
* This is a fun site
winner
The American Image: The Photographs of John Collier Jr.
http://americanimage.unm.edu/
* Brilliant use of Web 2 technologies. The Propaganda film
activity is wonderful.
* An excellent site. The live connection to flickr juxtaposed
with photos from the collections with shared themes is a great way to
bring a perspective to both image sets.
* Excellent use of Flickr, and allowing users to mash up photos,
video, and audio was very engaging. Some of
*Educational*
winner
Great Chicago Stories, Chicago History Museum
http://greatchicagostories.org
* Stories are very compellingly written, and though very linear
within the story, incorporate other elements once outside the story.
I love the fact they actually evaluated the site--it does make a
difference in my judging to see how it actually plays out with real
students.
* The Chicago History Museum has brought forth an exemplary
educational resource for learning about history through storytelling.
The site is rich with artifacts, primary source materials, and
engaging stories. Teachers were involved in the site's development,
and it shows.
* Great Chicago Stories is an exemplary educational website. The
direct involvement of educators is evident throughout, with
consideration for the real needs of classroom teachers given to all
of the content. I was drawn into the stories at both the elementary
and high school levels. ... it is a site that I will return to and
can easily imagine teachers treasuring it.
*Professional*
honourable mention
The IMA Dashboard, Indianapolis Museum of Art
http://dashboard.imamuseum.org
* a viewport into the inner workings of a museum that does a nice
job of providing a great snapshot of a ton of museum esoterica
* a professional site with a difference
* a little bit of everything in terms of information one would
require from a institutional website. The use of numbers creats a
sense of intrigue and hence a desire to find out more or dig deeper
for more information. Got sucked in to the site.
* I absolutely love this site
winner
ExhibitFiles, Association of Science-Technology Centers
http://exhibitfiles.org
* I got sucked into it far longer than I expected, browsing
through exhibit after exhibit, looking for little nuggets that I
could use in the future.
* certainly achieves the 'quality characteristics' of the Museum
Professional's Site, and if used by the community can be a valuable
resource to many museum professionals
*Research*
winner
Prints and Printmaking, Australia, Asia, Pacific
http://www.printsandprintmaking.gov.au/Catalogues/Work.aspx
* an impressive gateway reference site. This is what a reference
site should be. It covers a wide territory, with a clearly defined
focus, but also covering many aspects of that subject. It includes
biographical and institutional information, exhibitions and
bibliographies, as well as 45,000 works. The information is simply
and clearly presented.
*Community *
honourable mention
Brooklyn Museum of Art Community, Brooklyn Museum of Art
http://www.brooklynmuseum.org/community/
* It is striking to me how infused the community as throughout
the institution -- not just a blogger or two on staff, but an
apparent museum-wide commitment
* I liked the slogan: "Let us come to you!"
winner
My Brighton and Hove
http://www.mybrightonandhove.org.uk
* My Brighton and Hove (winner). The quality of the stories sets
it apart from other entries. So evocative, with many gems from
multiple authors. It's had a while to stew (8 years), and it shows...
* Really sweet. Possibly the best of the local history/memory
sites I've seen lately.
* Very vivid story of colorful local character The Great Omani.
Such good content! Interesting comments from visitors, who ask if
he's still alive (he was at the time), and then offering condolences
after he dies
My Brighton and Hove is also recognised as the Best Small Museum site.
Podcast
honourable mention
TateShots, Tate
http://tate.org.uk/tateshots
* Great content, great user interface. Varied in approach and yet
consistently entertaining and informative.
* All in all an exemplary site. But the addition of much needed
humor in the other sites give them the edge over this.
winner
Roman Art from the Louvre Webisodes, Indianaoplis Museum of Art
http://www.theromansarecoming.com/webisodes
* These are really engaging and look like they were really
designed to be pocasts and not simply repurposed content from other
media.
* Sexy, dramatic, informative, fantastic use of the technologies,
gives the viewer information about the exhibition process that is
much more complete and done in an exciting and engaging way. Bravo!
* The production values are high, the content is compelling and
addresses and is appropriate for the media
*Innovative*
Launchball, Science Museum, London
http://www.sciencemuseum.org.uk/launchball
* Impressive array of interactive, and very stimulating games.
Superb graphics and multimedia integration. Very intelligent
scripting.
* The visual design is very well done keying on strong,
high-contrast colours and iconography. The interface design is simple
and easy to learn.
* Man, I have literally played with this for hours now. Even
better is the open-endedness of it all and the user contributions. I
can't stop fiddling with it.
*People's choice*
chosen by people registered at http://conference.archimuse.com
Maps: Tools for Adventure, The Children's Museum of Indianapolis (in
conjunction with the National Geographic Society)
http://www.nationalgeographic.com/education/toolsforadventure
*Best of the Web*
Launchball, Science Museum London
http://www.sciencemuseum.org.uk/launchball
* I was very skeptical about this until I started playing...and
couldn't stop.
* Man, I have literally played with this for hours now. Even
better is the open-endedness of it all and the user contributions. I
can't stop fiddling with it.
Congratulations to all of the winners, and thanks to the judges for
their contributions!
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For full details, see http://www.archimuse.com/mw2008/best/index.html
--
__________
J. Trant [log in to unmask]
Partner & Principal Consultant phone: +1 416 691 2516
Archives & Museum Informatics fax: +1 416 352 6025
158 Lee Ave, Toronto
Ontario M4E 2P3 Canada http://www.archimuse.com
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