I am not an archivist, but my understanding is, the term finding aid is used in museums or archive collections.  EAD, like Matt said, is a xml-based metadata schema and can be used to describe finding aids.  In other words, EAD is not finding aids, but finding aids in EAD format are, just in digital or electronic format - HTML pages per se.  Look at the page you gave: abbott_seng1.php.  Why php is used?  Very likely, some xml parsing techniques are used in php programming and rendering the xml file into a HTML page.

I am not sure if I help to explain something.

Kelly Zhu

-----Original Message-----
From: Code for Libraries [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Rachel Shaevel
Sent: 2013年5月10日 15:56
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: [CODE4LIB] EAD vs. HTML for finding aids

My apologies if my question didn't make sense.  I'm speaking as a cataloger, not a coder.  :)  Basically we have some of our finding aids as just plain old HTML pages, like this one:  http://www.chipublib.org/cplbooksmovies/cplarchive/archivalcoll/abbott_seng1.php.  The choices presented by TPTB were to continue adding HTML finding aid pages to our web site (which will soon be run by BiblioCommons) or to mark them up using EAD and upload them into CONTENTdm and make them part of our digital collections.  I suspect the finding aids in question are those that exist in paper format, not those that are already on our web site.

It's not really an either-or kind of thing.  I thought if the finding aids were marked up in EAD they would be more computer-actionable.  

Thanks again-

Rachel Shaevel
Electronic Resources Cataloger
Technical Services/Catalog Department
Chicago Public Library
Harold Washington Library Center
400 S. State St.
Chicago, IL 60605
P: (312) 747-4660
[log in to unmask]


-----Original Message-----
From: Code for Libraries [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Matthew Sherman
Sent: Friday, May 10, 2013 3:43 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: [CODE4LIB] EAD vs. HTML for finding aids

Rachel,

EAD is just a metadata schema, which can be made to be read via html web pages though xslt, or some scripting that pulls out the relevant field data and makes it displayed nicer, usually in an HTML wrapper.  So I guess it would be helpful if you could elaborate on your question a bit more so we can give you some useful feedback.

Matt Sherman


On Fri, May 10, 2013 at 3:39 PM, Rachel Shaevel <[log in to unmask]>wrote:

> Hello friendly Borg,
>
> Does anyone have anything thoughts about using EAD for finding aids vs.
> HTML?  Or are both going the way of the dinosaurs?
>
> Thanks!
> Rachel
>
> Rachel Shaevel
> Electronic Resources Cataloger
> Technical Services/Catalog Department
> Chicago Public Library
> Harold Washington Library Center
> 400 S. State St.
> Chicago, IL 60605
> P: (312) 747-4660
> [log in to unmask]<mailto:[log in to unmask]>
>