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The Urley Bird: Digital Documentation of Leon Uris and John Crowley

This comprehensive digital documentation project explores the lives and works of acclaimed authors Leon Uris and John Crowley. From their literary achievements to the challenges of archiving their digital materials, this project sheds light on the processes and complexities of preserving their legacies. Through meticulous cataloging, file migration, and metadata management, the team ensures that the invaluable contributions of these authors are accessible for generations to come. Join us on this journey of discovery and preservation of literary treasures in the digital age.

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The Urley Bird: Digital Documentation of Leon Uris and John Crowley

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  1. The Urley Bird Opens in Word: Digital Documentation of Leon Uris and John Crowley as Authors Jennifer Lindley Sidney Tibbetts Jose Javier Garza INF 392 K 5 May 2007 John Crowley Leon Uris

  2. Creator Sketch Uris (1924-2003) Crowley (1942- ) • American historical novelist and writer of screenplays; great supporter of Ireland and Israel • Best known for novels Exodus and Trinity and screenplay of the film Gunfight at the O.K. Corral • HRC materials include Trinity screenplays and cash disbursement files • American novelist, teacher and writer of documentary films; known for combining science fiction, fantasy, and philosophy in his works • Best known for Little,Big and his Ægypt tetralogy • HRC materials include Dæmonomania, The Translator, a documentary about China, and correspondence

  3. Physical Description Uris Crowley • 169 boxes • 43 oversize boxes • 6 galley folders • 20 3.5” diskettes • (108 linear feet) • Gifts 1997, 2003-4 • 21 boxes • 1 print box • 9 3.5” diskettes (9.24 linear feet) Purchases: 1992, 1994, 2000

  4. Digital Archaeology Uris Crowley • Worked primarily with Apple Macintosh OS 8.5 and OSX • Only 3 of 20 disks mounted properly on OS 8.5 • 1 disk was corrupt • Worked with Quinn Stewart to attempt to open other disks • Worked primarily with Windows 2000 and Windows XP • All disks mounted and all files readable

  5. File Formats/Migration Uris Crowley • Microsoft Word files migrated to RTF and TXT using Microsoft Word 2004 for Mac • Microsoft Works Spreadsheets (AWSS) would not render • After many attempts, opened and migrated in Microsoft Word • Invalid or unidentified file formats • WordPerfect 9 files opened • Microsoft Word files would not open on Win 2000 • RTF and Unicode copies were generated in ABC AmberText Converter or WordPerfect 9 or Word 2003

  6. Checksums Uris Crowley • Integrity calculates three MD5 hashes: file checksum, data fork, resource fork • Only some files had resource forks • One file had differing file checksum and data fork hashes • Jacksum calculates MD5 hashes through a command line interface

  7. Cataloging & Metadata Uris Crowley • Used CatFinder to generate file catalog containing technical metadata • Searched LOC authorities list for subject headings • Used WinCatalog Light to generate file catalog containing technical metadata • Searched LOC authorities list for subject headings • Harvested “Date created” metadata by hand

  8. Finding Aids and File Structure Uris Crowley • DSpace arrangement reflects HRC finding aid • DSpace arrangement reflects HRC finding aid • Added new series to incorporate Correspondence files

  9. Uris File Structure

  10. Crowley File Structure

  11. Ingest Process

  12. Administrative Issues Uris Crowley • How much information should we provide in Dspace regarding the files we know about only from disk labels? • How/whether to represent the letter Æ (ash) in the metadata • Should finding aids describe intellectual content or physical location? • Navigation woes of the ‘mære-weriges mod’

  13. The Bigger Picture Uris Crowley • Try before you buy! • Get hardware/software configurations from the author • Process digital materials now; they won’t wait • Even Tech Gurus fail sometimes • Discuss metadata requirements and levels of service before acquisition • Pray that authors stick to MS Word until we can get this digital archiving business sorted!

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