Diversify Your Crowdsourcing Portfolio with Open-Source Software

This workshop is designed for library and museum staff at all levels of technical ability interested in learning about flexible and lightweight crowdsourcing platforms tailored for a wide variety of user-contributed data.
Crowdsourcing projects that aim to collect manuscript transcriptions, image tags, and other data have proven to be an invaluable strategy for both engaging users and enhancing access to collections. A few institutions, such as the Smithsonian with its Transcription Center, have gone all-in on crowdsourcing, expanding the scope of their initiatives to include multiple tasks, material types, and target audiences.
Even a few years ago, this kind of expansion would have exceeded the capabilities of most GLAMs, requiring a crowd of expensive web designers and programmers creating customized tools to power such sites. But now — thanks to a wave of grant-funded initiatives to stop the reinvention of the platform wheel – modestly-staffed institutions can build crowdsourcing portfolios on a smaller scale with a toolkit of easy-to-use open-source software programs.
This workshop will provide an overview of and hands-on experience with the following tools:
• Omeka + Scripto for transcription of free-text manuscripts like letters and diaries
• Zooniverse Project Builder for mark-up and transcription of structured information in manuscript business forms, natural science records, government documents, etc.
• Metadata Games for a gamified approach to image tagging and classification
• Omeka + Contribution for collecting user-generated digital images, audio, video, and textual submissions
• Scalar for providing a coherent, attractively-designed scaffolding for these platforms
Attendees will also receive advice on project design, promotional strategies, and lessons learned from crowdsourcing case studies at the Newberry Library.

Bibliography:
• Newberry Digital Volunteers http://publications.newberry.org/digital-volunteers
• Omeka https://omeka.org/
• Scripto http://scripto.org/
• Contribution http://omeka.org/codex/Plugins/Contribution_2.0
• Zooniverse Project Builder https://www.zooniverse.org/lab
• Metadata Games http://www.metadatagames.org/
• Scalar http://scalar.usc.edu/scalar/