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Re: Off line; MS Access databases



Some of us ask for private responses when asking about issues that could spark controversy.  When I asked archivists who have reservations about or who are downright opposed to EAD to share their views with me, I wanted them to do so without fear of being attacked.  My apologies to the list for not summarizing the responses I got.  Several respondents lamented the ever-increasing presence of computers in their working lives, and several others noted that they lacked the staff and technology resources needed to implement EAD.  One particularly thoughtful respondent questioned why, given the lack of user studies documenting end-level users' attitudes toward and use of finding aids, archivists should rush to embrace a finding aid-based descriptive standard.  This individual also suspected that EAD does not take full advantage of SGML's possibilities.  [For additional info, take a look at the discussion that took place on this list under the subject headings "Can you rEAD me?" and "EAD is a bad, bad idea" in August and September 1997.]

Having just eaten a little crow for not reporting to the list what I learned from private responses, let me say that in some instances follow-up messages don't appear because there is nothing to report!  I asked a little while ago about using Microsoft Access databases to produce MARC-format messages, and the only responses I got were from other people who were also trying to determine whether it was possible to use Access in this fashion.

If you or your institution has used MS Access to construct databases capable of exporting MARC format records (or if you have an instructive tale of failure) please send a message to the list--at least four subscribers are interested in this issue.  If I get any substantative private responses, I will summarize them in a message to the list.  Thanks!



Bonita L. Weddle
Documentary Heritage Services
New York State Archives
9C71 Cultural Education Center
Albany, NY 12230
(518) 473-4258

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