Workshop Strands | DHO Summer School 2010

A Practical Introduction to the Text Encoding Initiative

Facilitated by:

Susan Schreibman (Digital Humanities Observatory) and Justin Tonra (University College London)

Venue: Member's Room, Royal Irish Academy, 19 Dawson Street

This course will provide an introduction to the theory and practice of encoding and transforming electronic texts for the humanities. This workshop is designed for individuals embarking on a text encoding project and who would like a better understanding of the philosophy, theory, and practicalities of encoding in XML (Extensible Markup Language) using the Text Encoding Initiative (TEI) guidelines. Focus will be given to methods for creating TEI, including translating existing formats (specifically MS Word and Excel documents) into TEI and encoding by hand, as well as displaying, visualizing, and using encoded texts. Existing knowledge of XML and the TEI is helpful but not necessary. Students will also receive instruction on specifying their own document encoding rules using schemas.

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Text Transformations with XSLT: Single Source Publishing to Multiple Media

Facilitated by: Laura Mandell (Miami University of Ohio) and Dana Wheeles (University of Virginia)

Venue: Weingreen Museum, 5th Floor, Arts Block, Trinity College Dublin

Once you have successfully encoded your TEI documents, or other documents in XML, there is much that you can do with them automatically, from revising the coding as you learn more, to creating web pages for presentation online. You can use XSL -- eXtensible Stylesheet Language -- to manipulate your TEI documents in numerous ways.
We will be teaching you how to write XSL files for automatically transforming a whole batch of TEI files into HTML, database entries, metadata (we'll explain the usefulness of that), all simply using oXygen (the 'Dreamweaver' for XML). We'll also experiment with exporting into E-book and iPad formats as well. We will learn when to make changes in both style and form for achieving the best presentation effects and highest quality coding for sustainability at the same time. Finally, on the last day of the workshop, we will all use XSLT for creating data visualizations.

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Data Visualisation for the Humanities

Facilitated by: Paolo Battino (Digital Humanities Observatory) and Shawn Day (Digital Humanities Observatory)

Venue: Classics Seminar Room, 6th Floor, Arts Block, Trinity College Dublin

Humanities scholarship increasingly relies on the analysis and presentation of large amounts of data. Although this provides a new and promising scope for research, the magnitude of the information challenges human ability to appreciate the patterns and the application of machine technologies is essential. Manipulation of large datasets and leveraging disparate data collections to enable discovery can be empowered through the selection and application of appropriate visualisation maethods. Additionally, visualisation strategies can enable not simply the analysis of large amounts of data, but the effective presentation of research findings.

This course will provide an introduction to the concepts, techniques, and technology for effective visualisation of data for digital humanities research. This strand will introduce e-humanities scholars to the value of data visualisation. It will present a review of the existing standards and tools which are available to assist with data design and publication for e-humanities research and analysis. At the conclusion of this workshop participants will be familiar with the tools and methods available to consider for data collection and short term storage; manipulation and presentation of data; and to conduct analysis of data from a humanities perspective.

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Digitisation and Dissemination: Image, Multimedia and Visualisation for the Humanities and Social Science

Facilitated by: Tim Keefe (Trinity College Dublin) and Eoin Kilfeather (Dublin Institute of Technology)

Venue: Council Room, Royal Irish Academy, 19 Dawson Street

Digitisation is at the core of many activities carried out by digital humanities scholars, and yet few have had to engage in practical ways with the standards, methods and techniques that guide this craft. This workshop will cover a range of topics related the the digitisation and distribution of images and the qualitative, post-processing analysis and presentation of multimedia sources. We would highly recommend this course to anyone dealing with image, audio and multimedia data.

This first section will expose some of the critical factors that should be considered when undertaking digitisation or creating a digitisation strategy. It will explore:

creating and maintaining an on-line collection of digital images, include scanning and image processing (including derivative file creation and best practice in file format selection);
metadata and cataloguing standards;
describing images (including controlled vocabularies such as Library of Congress Subject Headings and Getty Thesaurus for Graphic Materials);
data management (including issues of digital curation, preservation, and migration);
database and repository options; and
color management and copyright issues.

The second section of this workshop will focus on qualitative data and the integration of audio and visual research components with literary or historical source material or interview transcripts and the important role this can play in humanities and social science research. This workshop will explore the ways and means of visualising the text around critical terms and how we can use the linguistic structures to provide a starting point for efficiently reviewing and understanding this data. Likewise, many scholars are now using audio and “lens-based” research methods; using audio recorders or the camera (still and video) to capture the data and “post-production” tools to analyse and present it. While many practitioners are skilled in capturing the data, the necessary post-production skills needed to analyse and present it are sometimes lacking. This is especially true when presenting temporal media and synchronous media on the web. Through case studies and “hands-on” sessions participants will become familiar with the tools and methods to deal with multiple media types and how to publish them on the web.

This course is suitable for all academics and professionals. No previous experience with computer science or visualisation tools is required. Common computing skills will be assumed, e.g. file manipulation ('open', 'save as', etc.), navigation of web-sites through hyperlinks, etc.

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Please note that the programme may be altered due to lack of numbers registering for a particular workshop strand or non-availabilty of a speaker or facilitator. In the event of changes to the programme you will be notified via the email you provide at time of registration. Should the workshop strand you register for not be offered, you will be offered an alternative strand or a refund of the registration fee.