Virtual Exhibits Investment Program - Cataloguing Instructions and Guidelines

February 26, 2010

I - Recommendations:

  • It is recommended that someone with a good understanding of the exhibit’s content catalogue the product.
  • You may wish to print out the form ahead of time to help you decide what you want to put in the fields.
  • It may be helpful to have two browser windows open at the same time (one for the English cataloguing tool and the second for the French).
  • It may also be helpful to have an additional browser window open with the virtual exhibit for further reference when looking for keywords and a description of the product.
  • If you are cataloguing the English version of the product, make sure you are in the English cataloguing tool and vice-versa for the French.
  • Most virtual exhibits have separate French and English homepages - whenever possible, please select the appropriate URL in the corresponding language.
  • Should the product being catalogued not offer a separate French and English homepage, it is recommended that the URL on the first unilingual page following the main homepage be used for the cataloguing of the exhibit.

II - How to Access the Cataloguing Tool in English:

  1. Go to http://www.rcip-chin.gc.ca/adhesion-membership/index-eng.jsp
  2. Click on "Members Login" located on the left side of the page
  3. Click on "Virtual Exhibit Cataloguing Tool" located under the "Add or Update Records" heading
  4. A window appears asking for a user name and password. Enter the user name and password your institution was given for the Museums in Canada (VMC Institution and Event Guide). If you have not yet been given these passwords, please contact CHIN client services at 1-800-520-2446 or 819-994-1200.
  5. Click on "Add your Learning Material".
  6. Click on "The Metacollector: Contribution Form".
  7. In the box, add the URL of the English homepage of the web site. If the virtual exhibit resides on the CHIN server, please ensure that the address inserted starts with: "www.virtualmuseum.ca".

III - How to Access the Cataloguing Tool in French (N.B. This instructions document is also available in French):

  1. Go to http://www.rcip-chin.gc.ca/adhesion-membership/index-fra.jsp
  2. Click on "Accès des membres" located on the left side of the page.
  3. Click on "Outil de catalogage pour les expositions virtuelles" located under the "Ajouts et mises à jour des enregistrements" heading.
  4. Enter user name and password.
  5. Click on "Ajouter votre matériel didactique".
  6. Click on "Le métacollecteur : formulaire de contribution".
  7. In the box, add the URL of the French homepage of the web site. If the virtual exhibit resides on the CHIN server, please ensure that the address inserted starts with: "www.museevirtuel.ca".

IV - Clarifications on Certain Fields That May Cause Confusion or That Require Special Considerations When Filling Out the Cataloguing Form:

  • Title (Titre): It is best to enter the title in all the languages in which it is presented in the virtual exhibit.
  • Subject / Curriculum Areas (Sujets / Programmes d'études): Please choose only one subject among the list presented, which best corresponds to the content of the virtual exhibit. Then, select the most appropriate terms from the drop-down menu.
  • Keywords (Mots-clés): You can use the words in the glossary or as many other terms as appropriate to enable retrieval by search engines.
  • Description (Description): It is recommended that a member from the CHIN Marketing team be consulted when creating the description blurb. The length of this text should be about 150 words.
  • Date created (Date de création): Date when product was made available for public viewing on the Web.
  • Agent (Agent): For products created through the Investment Program: Museums and institutions involved in the creation of the product should be entered as "Creators" ("Créateurs").
    • Any other content providers should be entered as "Contributors" ("Contributeurs").
    • Given that the virtual exhibit is a VMC product, CHIN should not be included.
  • Usage / Resource Type (Utilisation / Type de ressource): When cataloguing the product, please ensure you only select the term "Virtual Exhibition" ("Exposition virtuelle") from the options in the drop-down menu. If a product contains a standalone game, this game should be catalogued separately. *(See V)
  • Related Resources / Relation (Ressources connexes / Relation): Please consider the following when selecting an option from the drop-down menu and adding information in the "Short Description" ("Courte description") box on the right:
    • Has Part (Comporte une partie de): When cataloguing the main resource (the product in its entirety), reference the games, lesson plans or other educational sub-sections that are included within it. For example: When cataloguing the virtual exhibit "Butterflies North and South," the following description could be added in the box: “This exhibit also contains a sub-section called ‘Teachers and Games.’”
    • Is Part of (Fait partie de): When cataloguing a sub-section of a main product (a game, lesson plan or other educational materials), reference the title of the product from which this sub-section originates. For example: When cataloguing the “Teachers and Games" page of “Butterflies North and South,” the following description could be added in the box: "For best results when playing this game, one may want to consult the virtual exhibit ‘Butterflies North and South’ in its entirety.”
    • Is Version of (Est une version de): When cataloguing a product, which has an alternate linguistic version or versions, the title of these versions should be documented here. For example: When cataloguing the “Butterflies North and South” virtual exhibit in English, the following titles would be included in the box: "Mariposas del norte y del sur" and "Papillons du nord et du sud."
    • Is Based on (Est la base de): When cataloguing a product which is related to a physical exhibit or other virtual exhibit, this information should be mentioned here. For example: When cataloguing the “Anno Domini” virtual exhibit, the following information would be included in the box: "This virtual exhibit is part of a larger project that includes a major physical exhibition that opened at The Provincial Museum of Alberta in Edmonton in October 2000."
  • Send email to (Envoyer courriel à): Once the form has been completed, in the "Send email to" ("Envoyer courriel à") box, please write the email address of the person who will insert the metadata in the product. This person will then receive an automated message generated by the cataloguing tool, which will inform him or her of the metadata to be incorporated in the product. You must click on the "Send email to" ("Envoyer courriel à") button to complete the cataloguing process.

V - *Cataloguing a Game Residing Within a Virtual Product:

To catalogue a game independently from the product in which it resides, the URL to be used should be the specific page where the game is accessed. If there is more than one game in the main product, only the general games page should be catalogued (if one exists), as opposed to cataloguing each game individually. In the "Usage / Resource Type" ("Utilisation / Type de ressource") section of the form, please ensure you select the term "game" ("jeu") and that you do not select the term "Virtual Exhibition" ("Exposition virtuelle"). Also, in the "Related resources / Relation" ("Ressources connexes / Relations") field, please select "Is part of" ("Fait partie de") from drop-down menu and in the box on the right, write the title of the product in which the game is found.