What happens when I share my old photo on the Facebook page?
The PHPP project is all about collecting photos and documents from individuals to add to a digital archive. But please know when you share your photo on the Facebook page, IT DOES NOT GET ADDED TO THE OFFICIAL DIGITAL ARCHIVE. It will be seen by a limited number of people on the Facebook page (because of the way Facebook shares things and not for any reason within the control of the PHPP group) when you share it. Often PHPP administrators will reshare it in hopes that more people will see it.
What’s different about the offical digital archive of PHPP vs. Facebook?
The offical digital archive is a database maintained by the college, which solid file protection and backup procedures in place to ensure against loss. Items same in the PHPP archive are intended to be preserverd for access by future generations. Facebook makes no guarantees regarding how long images will be accessible. In addition, items contributed to the PHPP digital archive are cataloged, i.e. any information known about the people, place, event, etc. in the photograph is recorded and made searchable. This ensures that the item can be found in the future. Facebook does not offer any kind of search capabilities.
What do I have to do to contribute my item to the official PHPP digital archive?
If you’ve shared the item on Facebook, then you’ve already created a scan file. That file needs to be sent to the project lead at poweshiekhistory@gmail.com. We will ask you to provide as much information on the item as you know and will have you sign a release forming saying it is ok to add to the database (you maintain all rights to the materials).
Why should I go to the trouble?
It’s a few more steps than sharing it on Facebook, but it ensures the preservation of your historical materials for future generations. It also preserves against the item being lost or damaged and makes it accessible to a wide range of people.