How to use the Narratives module
Of all the EMu modules, the Narratives module has been perhaps least understood and most underutili
One is that the Narratives module was ahead of its time when it was introduced soon after EMu's release.
EMu modules, in general, collect and organi
Collections data management - the organi
And this is where the Narratives module comes into its own, and why, as institutions are looking at ways to make their collections available online, interest in this tool is growing.
That is part of the reason why the Narratives module has been underutili
As we'll see, the Narratives module is perhaps most powerful as the public face of your collection: as the content management tool for a website that presents a collection to the world. But this is by no means its only function. Others include:
- Labels for exhibits.
- Textual descriptions for brochures and programs.
- Miscellaneous internal (non-public) information management, e.g. a record of conversations held or correspondence sent and received.
- Providing researchers (specialist and private or public) with purpose-made (tailored) material.
The Narratives module brings together related and diverse information about a particular object, collection of objects or subject, linking a collection in significant ways. As with EMu's Catalog
The Narratives module records stories about the collections from item level to collection groupings and a multitude of other collections related angles. It helps structure these stories for different types of publication, including delivery to the web. It stores historically significant, general or even ephemeral information gathered about the collections. In short, the Narratives module is designed to hold any interpretative information about a collection, as well as references to all of the resources (EMu and non-EMu) used to author it.
However, the versatility and flexibility of the Narratives module are not limited to its uses. As we'll see, even when it comes to presenting a collection online, there are several ways to achieve this end, each with its advantages.