Black Box Larry Gall -- Peabody Museum of Natural History

… about computing [black boxes]

… about the [black boxes that comprise] EMu

… a black box inspired by Will Real & emuusers.org

“ This Bud’s for you, Will ”

___ ^ Moose Head’s

“ This Bud’s for you, Will ” ___ ^ Moose Head’s Black Box’s _________ ^

Black box nomenclature

Some EMu black boxes

Black box nomenclature Some EMu black boxes Will’s Black Box Hack

Black box nomenclature Some EMu black boxes Will’s Black Box Hack to be posted on emuusers.org ^

Peabody Collections Counts & Functional Cataloguing Unit Anthropology 325,000Lot Botany 350,000Individual Entomology 950,000Lot / Individual Invertebrate Paleontology 325,000Lot Invertebrate Zoology 325,000Lot Mineralogy 35,000Individual Paleobotany 150,000Individual Scientific Instruments 4,000Individual Vertebrate Paleontology 125,000Individual Vertebrate Zoology 185,000Lot / Individual 2.7 million database-able units => ~12 million items

Peabody Collections Functional Units Databased Anthropology 325, % Botany 350,000 1 % Entomology 950, % Invertebrate Paleontology 325, % Invertebrate Zoology 325, % Mineralogy 35, % Paleobotany 150, % Scientific Instruments 4, % Vertebrate Paleontology 125, % Vertebrate Zoology 185, % 1,225,000 of 2.7 million => 45 % overall

Black box nomenclature

“A piece of equipment provided by a vendor for the purpose of using that vendor’s product.” Wikipedia.org

“ A black box is any device whose inner workings are not understood or accessible to the user.” Whatis.com

“A piece of equipment provided by a vendor for the purpose of using that vendor’s product.” Wikipedia.org

“A piece of equipment provided by a vendor for the purpose of using that vendor’s product.” Wikipedia.org

“A piece of equipment provided by a vendor for the purpose of using that vendor’s product.” Wikipedia.org

“ The opposite of a black box is a system where the inner components or logic are available for inspection.” Wikipedia.org

“ …sometimes known as a white box, glass box, or a clear box.” Wikipedia.org

EMu code & infrastructure is accessible, hackable, extensible

“ …white box in [that] the program code can be seen, but the code is so complex that it might as well be a black box.” Wikipedia.org

EMu code & infrastructure is accessible, hackable, extensible

also requires coaxing to behave _________________ ^

EMu code & infrastructure is accessible, hackable, extensible also requires coaxing to behave _________________ ^

Black box nomenclature

Some EMu black boxes

Black box nomenclature Some EMu black boxes they’re everywhere ^

The EMu Registry

Group Default Group|Admin|Table|ecatalogue|Column Access| LocCurrentLocation duQuery dvEdit daReplace duEdit Insert Tab Order {Launch Temp %1} script

The EMu Registry Like Windows registry, duQuery dvEdit daReplace duEdit

The EMu Registry Like Windows registry, part black box, duQuery dvEdit daReplace duEdit

part black art, The EMu Registry Like Windows registry, part black box, duQuery dvEdit daReplace duEdit

part black art, The EMu Registry Like Windows registry, part black box, domain of EMu wizards

part black art, The EMu Registry Like Windows registry, part black box, domain of EMu wizards Bern Marshall

The Taxonomy Module

Epitome of a black box for KE clients other than the natural history ones…

and often a colossal black hole for them…

“Almost anything might occasionally be referred to as a black box: Wikipedia.org

“Almost anything might occasionally be referred to as a black box: a transistor, Wikipedia.org

“Almost anything might occasionally be referred to as a black box: a transistor, Wikipedia.org

“Almost anything might occasionally be referred to as a black box: a transistor, humans, Wikipedia.org

“Almost anything might occasionally be referred to as a black box: a transistor, humans, Wikipedia.org

“Almost anything might occasionally be referred to as a black box: a transistor, humans, the Internet.” Wikipedia.org

“Almost anything might occasionally be referred to as a black box: a transistor, humans, the Internet.” Wikipedia.org www

“Almost anything might occasionally be referred to as a black box: a transistor, humans, the Internet.” Wikipedia.org www Rather existentially black boxy…

www

Machines + People + Cyberspace

Pfffft !

Anakin Skywalker

Seven of Nine

Anakin SkywalkerSeven of Nine Ahhhhhnold

The Ultimate Black Box

NEO Keanu Reeves

NEO Keanu Reeves TRINITY Carrie-Ann Moss

NEO Keanu Reeves TRINITY Carrie-Ann Moss MORPHEUS Laurence Fishburne

AGENT SMITH Hugo Weaving

AGENT SMITH Hugo Weaving

AGENT SMITH Hugo Weaving

There’s more…

Xxxxxxxxxxx X EMu

Xxxxxxxxxxx X EMu

Black box nomenclature Some EMu black boxes

Black box nomenclature Some EMu black boxes Will’s Black Box Hack

These suggested solutions all work successfully, But involve exiting EMu and operating “elsewhere,” And do not handle the multiple links/linking issue

Admin Task, calls script, builds Import control file

Address Will’s immediate problem, but also offer extensibility

Admin Task, calls script, builds Import control file

Build an Excel CSV file to import new images: Fill columns in spreadsheet as usual (e.g., MulTitle, Multimedia) Identify a catalog field with unique values (e.g., CatFullNumber) Coopt a multimedia field to hold the catalog values (e.g., NotNotes) Fill the coopted column with the corresponding unique catalog values Admin Task, calls script, builds Import control file

Build an Excel CSV file to import new images: Fill columns in spreadsheet as usual (e.g., MulTitle, Multimedia) Identify a catalog field with unique values (e.g., CatFullNumber) Coopt a multimedia field to hold the catalog values (e.g., NotNotes) Fill the coopted column with the corresponding unique catalog values Run the Import Tool Admin Task, calls script, builds Import control file

Build an Excel CSV file to import new images: Fill columns in spreadsheet as usual (e.g., MulTitle, Multimedia) Identify a catalog field with unique values (e.g., CatFullNumber) Coopt a multimedia field to hold the catalog values (e.g., NotNotes) Fill the coopted column with the corresponding unique catalog values Run the Import Tool Save these freshly imported images into a Group (e.g., MyMatrix) Run the new MM Linker Admin Task Admin Task, calls script, builds Import control file

Guts of the new MM Linker script: Using saved Group, make list (a) of catalog records in coopted column Admin Task, calls script, builds Import control file

Guts of the new MM Linker script: Using saved Group, make list (a) of catalog records in coopted column Affiliate multimedia records in the Group to proper catalog records Admin Task, calls script, builds Import control file

Guts of the new MM Linker script: Using saved Group, make list (a) of catalog records in coopted column Affiliate multimedia records in the Group to proper catalog records Query the catalog and assemble list (b) of existing linked multimedia Admin Task, calls script, builds Import control file

Guts of the new MM Linker script: Using saved Group, make list (a) of catalog records in coopted column Affiliate multimedia records in the Group to proper catalog records Query the catalog and assemble list (b) of existing linked multimedia Merge lists (a) and (b), following preferences the user has specified Admin Task, calls script, builds Import control file

Guts of the new MM Linker script: Using saved Group, make list (a) of catalog records in coopted column Affiliate multimedia records in the Group to proper catalog records Query the catalog and assemble list (b) of existing linked multimedia Merge lists (a) and (b), following preferences the user has specified - If errors, return a text file with brief description - If not, return an Excel CSV file good to go for import Admin Task, calls script, builds Import control file

Positional arguments to be passed to MM Linker: Name of the coopted multimedia fieldrequired Name of the unique catalogue fieldrequired Name of the multimedia Grouprequired Action for the MM Linker to takeoptional Admin Task, calls script, builds Import control file

Positional arguments to be passed to MM Linker: Name of the coopted multimedia fieldrequired Name of the unique catalogue fieldrequired Name of the multimedia Grouprequired Action for the MM Linker to takeoptional 2 = append new images onto the catalog records Admin Task, calls script, builds Import control file

Positional arguments to be passed to MM Linker: Name of the coopted multimedia fieldrequired Name of the unique catalogue fieldrequired Name of the multimedia Grouprequired Action for the MM Linker to takeoptional 0 = flush existing multimedia from the catalog records 1 = prepend new images onto the catalog records 2 = append new images onto the catalog records 3 = insert the new images after flushing existing ones 4 = just show all existing multimedia (use to make “backups”!) 5 = delete catalog links anywhere for specified multimedia Admin Task, calls script, builds Import control file

Registry entry = {Launch Temp %1} string “execute some external script and send it’s output into the file %1”

Registry entry = {Launch Temp %1} string “execute some external script and send it’s output into the file %1” string is the gateway into our Black Box string consists of the external script name and any arguments mmlinker MulDescription CatFullNumber [text: prompt] mmlinker MulDescription CatFullNumber mymatrixgroup [text: prompt]

Registry entry = {Launch Temp %1} string “execute some external script and send it’s output into the file %1” string is the gateway into our Black Box string consists of the external script name and any arguments mmlinker MulDescription CatFullNumber [text: prompt] mmlinker MulDescription CatFullNumber mymatrixgroup [text: prompt]

emuload status

{Launch Temp %1} labels-ent-new 2 [text:Enter cat. no. or group]

{Launch Temp %1} mmlinker MulDescription CatFullNumber [text:]

Existing Multimedia records

Import the new Multimedia records

mmlinker with action=2 (postpend)

mmlinker with action=5 (selective kill)