Tori's Digital Humanities Project

   Tori has a great idea for her Digital Humanities project. She has decided to do an online exhibit that will display and discuss the experience of individuals affiliated with the House of Industry and Refuge in Aboyne, Ontario. Her online exhibit’s first page includes a brief, written historical background regarding the House and gives viewers some historical context about its importance. I have no background knowledge of the House of Industry and Refuge and I think viewers would appreciate a more detailed synopsis of the history in order to really understand its significance. Perhaps a section that explains Tori’s interest in her topic would also be of use, as she has valuable experience working with primary source documents relating to the house. Working at the museum adds credibility to her work. I would also suggest that on the first page of her exhibit a brief explanation of what the exhibit is going to show in the next few pages would be of value. 

   Tori has done a wonderful job making SketchUp animations. Her videos demonstrate that she has taken the time to become familiar with the program and is able to use it to benefit her online exhibit. Tori ‘s project has run into issues due to her position as a museum employee. She explained that she has access to some resources that the public does not have, however, when using the archives to conduct research she is a researcher and not an employee and therefore does not have access to some of the sources she originally believed she would be able to use. Despite this setback, Tori has found roundabout ways to fix this problem. Whether that was getting the permission she needed to carry through with her research or recreate documents she does not have permission to display on her online exhibit. As explained in her blog, this online exhibit will also have personally recorded interviews, which I think will be an excellent addition, as it will give a more “life-like” experience. She is hoping to keep the recorded versions of the interviews as close to the original as possible. Overall, Tori has done an excellent job with her project and I can’t wait to see the final project!