Intro
The University of Washington Libraries has been building digital collections for many years. These materials include photographs, maps, audio, video, and other media from the Libraries Special Collections as well as items from faculty research collections. The digital collection site runs on CONTENTdm, an asset management React application.
Problem
CONTENTdm provides a configuration tool for branding and tailoring the appearance of the generated collection website but the resulting model did not meet our needs. Only the header text, logo, background and text colors could be managed through the administrative interface. With more than 100 collections and supporting content such as exhibits, essays, and learning plans, we needed a more robust and complex site that matched the UW Libraries branding. The information architecture also had to be both scalable and intuitive.
Solution
I designed and developed a customized site using CSS and JS as the frontend to the CONTENTdm asset management software backend. I created a templated interface that can grow as more collections are added. The site averages over 50,000 unique visitors per month and is featured in Washington State K-12 lesson plans.
Collection Exhibits
Exhibits highlight and add context to collection materials. Some start as physical exhibits that I preserve in digital format, while most are born digital.
When a new exhibit is added, I meet with the content owners (partner organizations, faculty researchers, Libraries' staff, grant PIs, etc.) to develop a customized subsite that fits within the template system. This allows me to give them a bit of "branding" within a tried and tested framework.
