I think a lot of people have hit the nail on the head.  One has to weigh the
time and effort for creating/modifying the script and doing QA on the result
vs. the time it takes to encode the docs as text files from scratch.  I
think that someone who is well-trained in EAD would be much faster per
document than the scripting method.  The script-outputted EAD files are
likely to contain a number of errors that could take at least as long to fix
vs. the manual method.  You might be able to automate some easier structural
components, but each file has to be opened and checked by a human to make
sure it not only parses, but is semantically correct.  I have migrated ~5000
TEI files in the same manner.  Regular expression find/replace can only get
you so far.

Ethan

On Thu, Oct 7, 2010 at 2:16 PM, Catalina Oyler <[log in to unmask]> wrote:

> Daniel,
>
> While I was at Arizona Archives Online I worked on a set of macros in Word
> that can be used to automate the conversion of the container list portion
> of
> finding aids.  The idea being that you paste the container list into a Word
> template, quickly apply styles to the text using either key commands or
> find
> and replace, then run a macro which applies tags based on the styles.
>  While
> the Word documents have to be formatted very specifically, using find and
> replace can quickly accomplish this.   It can be a little hard to set up
> and
> figure out if you haven't used macros before but I wrote some basic user
> guides that try to explain the process.  Also, I should mention the
> original
> macros are all from the Bentley Historical Library which Nathan mentioned,
> I
> just modified them and created a more detailed user guide.
>
> So that everyone can see the documents I created a quick Google Site with
> then on it at https://sites.google.com/site/wordtoeadmacros/
> Start with the Installing ASH macros document and it will tell you how to
> set up macros (you have to do it on a PC the macros don't work on Macs)
> Then just use the conversion guide skipping all the intro stuff and going
> right to the section on running the macros
>
> Feel free to email me as you hit snags- there are lots of places for the
> setup to go wrong and the macros are picky, but if you're converting a
> large
> number of finding aids this will save you a lot of time once you have it
> down.  These macros are in use at a dozen institutions in Arizona and with
> a
> little set up they should be able to work for you as well.
>
> Catalina Oyler
> Digital Initiatives Coordinator
> The Five Colleges of Ohio
>
> On Thu, Oct 7, 2010 at 1:36 PM, Cornwall, Daniel D (EED) <
> [log in to unmask]> wrote:
>
> > Hi All,
> >
> >
> >
> > While I think what I'm looking for doesn't exist, I wanted to ask some
> > experts before making confident assertions.
> >
> >
> >
> > Our institution has a lot of finding aids for photo and manuscript
> > collections in MS Word Format. They have pretty standard subheadings. An
> > example can be found at
> > www.library.state.ak.us/hist/hist_docs/finding_aids/MS220.doc
> > <http://www.library.state.ak.us/hist/hist_docs/finding_aids/MS220.doc> .
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > I've had inquiries about getting these Word finding aids converted to
> > EAD (Encoded Archival Description) through some sort of converter. I
> > haven't been able to locate any such program, but maybe that's a
> > reflection on my searching skills.
> >
> >
> >
> > There are a number of programs to create EAD finding aids from scratch
> > and I've recommended acquiring one of these programs and getting staff
> > to rekey/copy & paste from Word into the EAD finding aid program. Staff
> > are not willing to do this at least until I can demonstrate that there
> > is no automated way to convert our finding aids. Of course, if there is
> > a converter, so much the better.
> >
> >
> >
> > Thanks in advance for any enlightenment you can give me. - Daniel
> >
> >
> >
> > =======================================
> >
> > Daniel Cornwall
> >
> > Head of Technical and Imaging Services
> >
> > Division of Libraries, Archives and Museums
> >
> > PO Box 110571
> > Juneau, AK 99811-0571
> > Phone (907) 465-6332
> >
> > Fax (907) 465-2665
> > E-Mail: [log in to unmask]
> >
> > See Division resources at http://lam.alaska.gov <http://lam.alaska.gov/>
> > .
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > Any opinions expressed in this e-mail are mine alone and not those of my
> > employer unless explicitly stated.
> >
> >
> >
> >
>