For my first post (and assignment for my Digital History graduate seminar) I am going to address the issue of publishing primary documents on the Internet. Students today (and the general public looking for information on a given topic) are more inclined to go to the Web than to any other source (like a library!). This is OK and has many benefits, not just the speed with which one can find a given document, but the scope of documents that one can collect is substantially greater than in a printed book. Moreover, one can also rely on resources that are already out there on the Web and link to a greater number of documents than if one were to take on a digitization program of one’s own.
However, there are many examples of both positive and not-so-great Websites that have attempted to implement such a collection. A quick Google search returned a host of potential Websites to choose from when looking for primary documents on German history that have been translated into English. I’ve selected three in particular that I think are either severely lacking in some respect, perform the function adequately, or excellently organize information for the end user.
Let’s start with the “Bad” – this is to say that it performs its stated function, but could be much improved. The site I found that I felt best fit this category was the German section of EuroDocs. While I admire the idea of building a Wiki in order to host primary documents, there don’t seem to be any documents that are hosted on the site itself. So, adding content to the site is limited to adding links to documents hosted elsewhere. On the positive side, the links are annotated so that one has an idea of what one might find if you follow the link. Since the Wiki is open for editing, one could add to the library of primary sources, but there is no style guide to help with submissions, nor a way to “lock” a primary source once it has been posted. Why might one want to “lock” a primary source? Well, frankly so that others cannot change the historical accuracy of the original text. The best implementation of primary source documents on the web are those that include both a PDF scan of the original archival document and the e-text version for searching and easy printing (especially if one is working with foreign language documents that have been translated into English).
The second site that I looked at would definitely fall into the “ugly” category. Admittedly, it is a small site that was apparently created for a professor’s students as a gateway for them to access online readings. However, the fact that it is in Google’s top ten hits means that it must attract a relatively high level of traffic. My main gripe with this collection of documents is its lack of organization. Although the documents are listed chronologically, there are no annotations (meaning that the user would need to already know what the document is about before deciding to click on the hyperlink). The layout is also VERY basic – simple titles with a link. The author of the page has obviously not updated this page in over four years, since he lists his book (self promotion of one’s scholarly book on such a page is generally frowned upon in the profession) as “forthcoming” in 2004. He also claims that he cannot vouch for the accuracy of the texts that he lists – OK, as I mentioned before primary sources posted to the web without some sort of authentication is a grey area when it comes to authenticity. But, he says that he can’t vouch for the authenticity for those texts that are not on his site – they are ALL on other sites. If you take a look at the source file (click on View and Source in IE or View and Page Source in Firefox) you can search for his server. The only hit for his own institution is his email address. I could go on and on about the styling of the site, but let’s just say that at a bare minimum when listing this many sources, it would be good to have a clickable table of contents.
Finally, the good – well I would actually say GREAT! Take a look at German History in Documents and Images at the German Historical Institute in Washington, DC. This is a major project in the field with a great deal of resources that have been put into translating hundreds of German language documents into English and pairing them with scholarly introductory essays by leading historians. In many ways we are comparing apples and oranges, but this site has developed into an excellent resource for teaching German history to students in the United States (and elsewhere) who cannot access the German language versions. The essays are exemplary of how one can meld together scholarly writing for a more or less popular audience with direct links to the primary documents. If you open any of the introductory essays you will find that they are peppered with links that lead the reader to further information in the form of an annotated primary source. So, not only do we have an introductory essay, but each source has been annotated as well. Plus, the whole site can be searched. If you poke around, you will also see that not every section is completed yet, but they are well on their way to building a great resource.