Over the past few weeks, I completed a rough draft edit of a second time stamped, written transcription of one of the sessions from last summer’s Smithsonian Folklife Festival and submitted it for review. I then downloaded another session to Microsoft Word for the time stamped transcription, but was not sure if that was one I should start working on next. I was finally able to go back into the physical office in Washington, DC and met with my immediate supervisor in person to review and discuss which sessions should be next on the list for transcription editing. After we settled on five sessions, I sent an email request for the audio files. 

Yesterday I went back into the office to attend DAMS training. (Due to a communication mishap, I had mistakenly thought that DAMS training would be held in person, instead of online.) But I was finally able to attend and learn about how the Digital Access Management System for the Smithsonian Institution works. DAMS is their method for storing and retrieving the digital materials that have either been digitized, or were born digital. The digitized materials consist of audio, images, and videos.  They do not use a universal system for organizing their metadata, which can make searching and retrieval a bit more difficult, according to the training instructor. My next assignment will be to set up a folder in DAMS, then start looking for pictures from last summer’s festival that correspond with each of the transcribed audio files, including four sessions that had been transcribed by another intern last summer. Once I find a picture for a session, the final project will involve putting together the time stamped, written transcription together with the image, a written summary of that particular session, and possibly a quote that encapsulates the essence of the session. 

I have also been fortunate to have the opportunity to participate in several field trips and webinars arranged by the Smithsonian Office for Interns, both in person and virtually. Last week, I was able to attend a “Digitization Adventure” hosted by the Smithsonian Libraries and Archives (SLA). We were shown the process by which they digitize books, pictures and film slides, and were able to ask lots of questions. 

Between attending this field trip and from the work I have been doing, I have seen how the process of digitizing materials can appear overwhelming, due to the vast amount of objects and archival materials to be digitized. The equipment used is quite large, and only one person can work on digitizing objects at a time. Currently, there are only a handful of employees working on digitization at the Smithsonian Institution. It sure looks like they will be kept busy for a long time!