1. Using OHMS to Index an Oral History Project
Talk to Me
Using OHMS to Index an Oral History Project

2. Talk to Me, HAPA Symposium 2014, lisa K. Miller
The IDEA
WKU Libraries Oral History Project
Libraries in existence almost 100 years
Similar project never done
I had experience with oral history in Arizona and Northern Ireland
Asked my department head and dean for permission
“Sure; try not to spend much money.”
Talk to Me, HAPA Symposium 2014, lisa K. Miller

3. Talk to Me, HAPA Symposium 2014, lisa K. Miller
The PREPARATION
LIS 642 ORAL HISTORY
University of Kentucky online course
Dr. Doug Boyd, Director, Louie B. Nunn Center for Oral History at UK
Crucial update of “techknowledge” needed for this project
Talk to Me, HAPA Symposium 2014, lisa K. Miller

4. WKU Libraries Oral History Project Summer Project
The Project
WKU Libraries Oral History Project
Summer Project
37 interviews with current and retired library employees
Recorded on Zoom recorder on loan from Academic Technology
Intensive 12-week collection period, interspersed with Reference and other duties
“One Person Project” – not the norm
Talk to Me, HAPA Symposium 2014, lisa K. Miller

5. Talk to Me, HAPA Symposium 2014, lisa K. Miller
The jump circle
Talk to Me, HAPA Symposium 2014, lisa K. Miller

6. WKU Libraries Oral History Project
The process
WKU Libraries Oral History Project
Archived on TopScholar, WKU’s Digital Research Repository
BePress product
Indexed and timestamped using OHMS, UK’s Oral History Metadata Synchronizer
I learned to use OHMS in the Oral History course
Final indexed version also uploaded to the Kentucky Digital Library
Talk to Me, HAPA Symposium 2014, lisa K. Miller

7. Talk to Me, HAPA Symposium 2014, lisa K. Miller
The recorder
Zoom H4n Handy Recorder
Uses SD cards, just like digital cameras
Take batteries and cord
Practice with it lots before your first interview – many features
Talk to Me, HAPA Symposium 2014, lisa K. Miller

8. The Collection process
Record interview in WAV format
Take digital photograph, save as JPG
Upload to personal and shared hard drives
Keep the SD cards until files are in two other SAFE places
Sara Scott and Ginger
Talk to Me, HAPA Symposium 2014, lisa K. Miller

9. Talk to Me, HAPA Symposium 2014, lisa K. Miller
Sample interview
Dr. Earl Wassom
Former Director of WKU Libraries
Retired in 1985
Still alive, still in town
Earl Wassom on TopScholar
Talk to Me, HAPA Symposium 2014, lisa K. Miller

10. The topscholar process
Connie Foster, Dean of WKU Libraries, is TopScholar Administrator
Convert WAV to MP3
Create record in TopScholar
Upload MP3 and JPG
The interview here is downloadable, but not searchable
Researchers can capture, clip, and edit
TopScholar at WKU Libraries
Talk to Me, HAPA Symposium 2014, lisa K. Miller

11. Talk to Me, HAPA Symposium 2014, lisa K. Miller
The OHMS process
Create a spreadsheet with metadata for each interview
Upload to OHMS
This populates the standard fields so you don’t have to input manually
Log-in and select an interview you want to index
As the interview plays, you are typing in keywords and partial transcripts
When complete, save as an XML file
to Eric Weig at UK
He posts the finished product
It is available on the viewer on the Kentucky Digital Library
The interview here is searchable, but not downloadable
Talk to Me, HAPA Symposium 2014, lisa K. Miller

12. Implications for your institution
Have thousands of oral histories on cassette?
First, digitize them, collection at a time
Talk with your administrators about the options for an on- campus digital repository (TopScholar), or searchable interviews with a viewer (OHMS)
Illinois Digital Archives would be the equivalent of the Kentucky Digital Library – talk to them
Make sure relevant departments (History, Folklore) are on-board with new procedures
Recruit grad students for conversion
Seek out grants
Ask for help!
Talk to Me, HAPA Symposium 2014, lisa K. Miller

13. Talk to Me, HAPA Symposium 2014, lisa K. Miller
The sources
BePress Doug Boyd Dougboyd.org Louie B. Nunn Center for Oral History Kentucky Digital Library
Oral History in the Digital Age TopScholar WKU Libraries Oral History Research Guide
Talk to Me, HAPA Symposium 2014, lisa K. Miller

14. Talk to Me, HAPA Symposium 2014, lisa K. Miller
The contacts
Questions about: BePress Kentucky Digital Library Louie B. Nunn Center for Oral History OHMS TopScholar WKU Libraries Oral History Project
Contact: Kia Wang Eric Weig Doug Boyd Doug Boyd Connie Foster Lisa K. Miller
Talk to Me, HAPA Symposium 2014, lisa K. Miller

15. Talk to Me, HAPA Symposium 2014, lisa K. Miller
Questions?
Talk to Me, HAPA Symposium 2014, lisa K. Miller

16. Thank you all for coming!
Talk to Me, HAPA Symposium 2014, lisa K. Miller