This session on electronic resources has three parts:
C.O.T.A.R., Collection of Torah Articles: The Evolution of a Database and its Uses, presented by Yaakov Aronson of Bar Ilan University
COTAR is a DVD database containing the full texts of articles in the field of Jewish law published in journals not readily available to the general public. The material chosen for scanning was chosen from the yearly bibliographies of outstanding articles in this field prepared by Rabbi Meir Wunder of the Jewish National and University Library (now National Library of Israel) and published in the annual Tehumin over a period of 20 years. The presentation discusses the preparations necessary before scanning could begin, permissions from authors and publications, etc, and the challenges presented by the project. Though the articles in the database are from the field of Jewish Law, their use as primary sources for political, cultural, social and economic history is discussed.
Creating a Bibliography and Catalog of All Hebrew Writings for the Future National Library of Israel, presented by Donald Goldman, publisher and producer
With the acceptance of using the MARBI Model B structure for Name Authority Files, and the linking together of all the various international formats with a VIAF (Virtual International Authority File) type server, and the experience gained in using these tools with Arabic, Goldman explains how it is now possible to create a cohesive bio-bibliographical unit.
The ‘Voices of the Holocaust’ Project at the Illinois Institute of Technology presented by Christopher Stewart, Ralph Pugh and Eben English, all three from the Illinois Institute of Technology (IIT)
In 1946, IIT psychology professor David P. BOder travelled to Europe to document the traumas suffered by persons displaced by the recent world war, including many survivors of the Holocaust. As his interviews progressed, Boder (armed with a wire recorder) soon abandoned his pre-planned structure interview questions and let his interviewees tell their personal narratives with as little hindrance as possible. His interviews contain much of the earliest extant Holocaust testimony anbd convey what scholar Donald Niewyk aptly describes as “fresh wounds.” In 1999, IIT’s Galvin Library launched its “Voices of the Holocaust” website, which features Boder’s translations of 70 of his 124 interviews. Galvin Library is currently coordinating the original language transcription of all the interviews, along with the translation of those that Boder was unable to complete himself. The augmented website, which will include many search capabilities for students and scholars, will be unveiled during 2009. IIT Dean of Libraries Christopher Stewart, Galvin Library Digital Services Librarian Eben English, and IIT Assistant University Archivist Ralph Pugh discuss David Boder’s life and work, the scope of his 1946 interviews, and the challenges facing IIT as it seeks to promote the widest possible sue of this invaluable resource.
See the Voices of the Holocaust website at http://voices.iit.edu.
These presentations were given at the 2009 Association of Jewish Libraries convention in Chicago, IL.
1 hr 6 min 59 sec