PastPerfect Newsletter

April/May 2008 Newsletter

1. Spotlight your Institution on www.MuseumSoftware.com!

2. Upcoming Training Opportunities for PastPerfect 4.0

3. PastPerfect Featured User: Guelph Museums, Guelph, Ontario, Canada

4. Free Updates for PastPerfect Museum Software!

5. PastPerfect-Online Featured Site: Camden Area History Center – Camden, ME

6. Tech Tip: How Do I Sort PastPerfect Records by Object ID#s or Accession #s without leading 0’s?

7. Contact Information

1. Spotlight your institution on www.MuseumSoftware.com!

Thanks to you, the demand for PastPerfect Software continues to grow. As we approach 6500 customers, our Client List grows too. This helpful resource from our website gives you the opportunity to take a look at other PastPerfect users from around the world. It is a way to network with PastPerfect customers with similar collections or museums in your area. To help you learn more about users, we provide links to participating clients’ websites.

By providing a link to your organization’s website, Virtual Exhibit, and/or PastPerfect-Online site, we can help promote your institution to the nearly half million visitors to our website.

To add your organization’s website to the Client List, please send your organization name, website address, Virtual Exhibit home page, and/or PastPerfect-Online site in an e-mail to clientlist@museumsoftware.com.

To see who else is using PastPerfect, please visit the Client List & Map under the Resources section of our website http://www.museumsoftware.com/client_list.htm.

2. Upcoming Training Opportunities for PastPerfect 4.0

Training for 2008 is under way! Currently scheduled training locations and dates are listed below.

Waco, TX—June 24-26
Hosted by the Texas Sports Hall of Fame & Museum

Chestnut Hill, MA—July 15-17
Hosted by the Longyear Museum

City of Industry, CA—August 5-7
Hosted by the Workman & Temple Family Homestead Museum

Exton, PA—August 19-21
Hosted by PastPerfect Software, Inc.

Kennesaw, GA—September 23-25
Hosted by the Southern Museum of Civil War & Locomotive History

Eau Claire, WI—October 7-9
Hosted jointly by the Minnesota Historical Society and the Wisconsin Historical Society

For more information about scheduled training classes please visit our website at http://www.museumsoftware.com/training.htm or contact our Training Coordinator, Jennessa Reed, by e-mail at training@museumsoftware.com or by phone at 800-562-6080.

3. PastPerfect Featured User: Guelph Museums, Guelph, Ontario, Canada
Special thanks to Kathleen Wall, Assistant Curator, for contributing this month’s article!

Guelph Museums consists of two sites in the city of Guelph, Ontario, Canada, which is about one hour west of Toronto. Guelph Civic Museum focuses on the history of the city, which was founded in 1827, and is housed in a heritage designated limestone building. Highlights of the collection include a great representation of early Guelph merchant crocks, a collection of designer textiles, and an extensive photograph and postcard collection of Guelph-related images.

The second site is McCrae House, the birthplace of doctor, poet and soldier John McCrae who wrote the poem, “In Flanders Fields”. This museum is designated as a National Historic Site and displays artifacts, photographs and archives pertaining to John McCrae, his family, and WWI.

Guelph Museums switched to PastPerfect in 2004 and have been converts ever since. The biggest draw for us was having a simple program that we could train volunteers and temporary staff to use but was still very powerful in searching and cataloguing. One of the best features for us is the MultiMedia/Digital Imaging Upgrade, which allows us to have images attached to our records. Because of this capability, we have jumped head first into digitizing our collection and are about one third of the way through.

Many museums in Ontario have switched to PastPerfect over the last few years so we set up a User’s Group to share information. We meet twice a year to pass on tricks and tips and to share some of the forms and reports that each site has created.

Guelph Museums receives about 20,000 visitors each year and we offer over 20 special events a year including our Poppy Push Plant Sale and our Robbie Burns Day. We also have several changing exhibits each year and a Children’s Gallery that looks at Guelph’s past through the eyes of a child. For more information on our museum, please check out our website www.guelph.ca/museum

4. Free Updates for PastPerfect Museum Software

Did you know updates are available from our website for your PastPerfect Museum Software versions 3.5 and 4.0? These free updates are released approximately every two months and are available for download by going to www.museumsoftware.com/software_updates.htm.

If you would rather receive a free update CD, please contact our Support Office toll free at 800-562-6080 or by e-mail at support@museumsoftware.com.

PastPerfect Version 3.5 - Current Service Update Available: 3.5C2

While there are no new features in the version 3.5C2 update, there are service updates that have been requested by 3.5 users.

PastPerfect Version 4 – New Update Available: 4.0D8

New features available in PastPerfect 4.0D8 include:

Option in Objects catalog to sort and instant find by place of origin
+ command to expand notes field on accession screen
Add year 2008 to Contacts dues and donations tracking
Add dear formal and dear casual to Dues table for reporting
Automatically create data backup when updating program
Before reindexing, check for other users and display a list of users currently in the program
Easy access to System Info screen by clicking Version# on main menu
Expanded System Information screen
Improved data backup functions for images and multimedia
Limit image subfolders to 600MB
New Backup Reminder screen that alerts if backup has not been made in last 3 days
New command button on Library screen to list, enter or view additional sites associated with the record
Option to Find by record# in Accessions and Contacts
Option to make backups from backup reminder screen
Save 30 hard drive backups
Upon Exit remind users to make an external backup every week
Upon Exit of program require users to make a backup at least every two weeks

5. PastPerfect-Online Featured Site!

The April featured site is:

Camden Area History Center – Camden, ME
http://camdenarea.pastperfect-online.com/

Sharing your collection over the internet has never been easier! More collections research is being done from the comfort of home than ever before. To help cater to this trend, PastPerfect Software, Inc. created PastPerfect-Online.

PastPerfect-Online is secure: PastPerfect-Online uploads a copy of the records, images and fields that you select into a searchable online database; confidential or sensitive information can remain private and under your control. To keep your images secure, PastPerfect-Online contains a watermarking tool that can watermark all of the images that you place online without affecting your permanent images.

PastPerfect-Online is searchable: PastPerfect-Online makes researching your institution’s collections easier for visitors by enabling keyword and customizable advanced searches. Visitors can also research your collections with PastPerfect-Online’s Click and Search feature. Additionally, if a visitor desires to view the essence of your collection they can use the Random Images Search, which will display thumbnail images at random from all of your uploaded catalog records.

PastPerfect-Online is easy to use: In addition to being safe and fully searchable, PastPerfect-Online is easy to use and update, since no web design or programming expertise is necessary! Once you select the records that you wish to appear online, the Web Publishing Wizard helps create the fields and implement the options for your site. Just create and upload the files and our support technicians take care of the rest! With PastPerfect-Online, you can also add your museum’s logo and design elements that compliment your existing website.

Throughout the year we will be featuring PastPerfect-Online sites on our website at http://www.museumsoftware.com/client_list.htm.

To view additional PastPerfect-Online sites, please visit www.PastPerfect-Online.com.

If you would like additional information about PastPerfect-Online, please visit our website at http://www.museumsoftware.com/pponline.htm, download the information sheet from http://www.museumsoftware.com/downloads.htm, e-mail our sales staff at sales@museumsoftware.com or contact us at 800/562-6080, toll free.

6. Tech Tip: How Do I Sort PastPerfect Records by Object ID Number or Accession Number without Leading 0’s?

1. From the Main Menu, choose Setup.
2. Next, select Gen. Information.
3. In the middle column, find the Objectid# sort field.
4. Choose the Numeric setting rather than Alpha.
5. Also enter the separator used in your accession and object ID numbers. It might be a period or dash or other punctuation. (For example, if object ID numbers appear as 2007.1.1, the separator is a period.)
6. Exit from General Information.
7. If everyone has closed out of PastPerfect and a backup has been created, click Reindex on the Main Menu. On the Reindex screen, make sure "Rebuild
Catalogs" is checked off, in addition to the other default selections.
8. Click "Start Reindex Now". When the reindex finished, Exit from the Reindex screen.
9. Select either Accession or one of your Catalogs (Objects, Photos, Archives and Library).
10. In the upper right of the screen, find the “Sort by” button.
11. In the Accession catalog, choose the “Accessn(num)” to sort numerically by Accession#.
12. In the Objects, Photos, Archives, or Library catalogs, choose “Objectid(num)” to sort records numerically by the object ID number or “Accessn(num)” to sort records numerically by Accession#.
13. Please note that you have changed the “Sort by” in one catalog. You will need to select numeric sorting for each catalog, as desired.

Please contact the PastPerfect operations support team at 800-562-6080 if you have any questions. We are happy to help!

This month’s tip was created in response to a Frequently Asked Question (F.A.Q.). This and other F.A.Q.s may be found under the Support portion of our website. F.A.Q.s answer some of the most common questions in the areas of Operations, Collections, System Requirements, Contact Management, Conversions, Virtual Exhibit, PastPerfect Online, as well as Errors and Technical Support. Check it out! http://www.museumsoftware.com/support/faq.htm

If you have comments or suggestions for future additions to the F.A.Q. page please e-mail betsy@museumsoftware.com.

7. Contact Information
Address: 300 North Pottstown Pike, Suite 200 Exton, PA 19341
Website: www.MuseumSoftware.com
Sales & Product Info: 800-562-6080 or sales@museumsoftware.com
Support: 800-562-6080 or support@museumsoftware.com
Training: 800-562-6080 or training@museumsoftware.com
Data Conversions: 800-562-6080 or conversions@museumsoftware.com


Home	Online Store	Sign-up to receive by email	Contact Us	Software Updates
April/May 2008 Newsletter 1. Spotlight your Institution on www.MuseumSoftware.com! 2. Upcoming Training Opportunities for PastPerfect 4.0 3. PastPerfect Featured User: Guelph Museums, Guelph, Ontario, Canada 4. Free Updates for PastPerfect Museum Software! 5. PastPerfect-Online Featured Site: Camden Area History Center – Camden, ME 6. Tech Tip: How Do I Sort PastPerfect Records by Object ID#s or Accession #s without leading 0’s? 7. Contact Information 1. Spotlight your institution on www.MuseumSoftware.com! Thanks to you, the demand for PastPerfect Software continues to grow. As we approach 6500 customers, our Client List grows too. This helpful resource from our website gives you the opportunity to take a look at other PastPerfect users from around the world. It is a way to network with PastPerfect customers with similar collections or museums in your area. To help you learn more about users, we provide links to participating clients’ websites. By providing a link to your organization’s website, Virtual Exhibit, and/or PastPerfect-Online site, we can help promote your institution to the nearly half million visitors to our website. To add your organization’s website to the Client List, please send your organization name, website address, Virtual Exhibit home page, and/or PastPerfect-Online site in an e-mail to clientlist@museumsoftware.com. To see who else is using PastPerfect, please visit the Client List & Map under the Resources section of our website http://www.museumsoftware.com/client_list.htm. 2. Upcoming Training Opportunities for PastPerfect 4.0 Training for 2008 is under way! Currently scheduled training locations and dates are listed below. Waco, TX—June 24-26 Hosted by the Texas Sports Hall of Fame & Museum Chestnut Hill, MA—July 15-17 Hosted by the Longyear Museum City of Industry, CA—August 5-7 Hosted by the Workman & Temple Family Homestead Museum Exton, PA—August 19-21 Hosted by PastPerfect Software, Inc. Kennesaw, GA—September 23-25 Hosted by the Southern Museum of Civil War & Locomotive History Eau Claire, WI—October 7-9 Hosted jointly by the Minnesota Historical Society and the Wisconsin Historical Society For more information about scheduled training classes please visit our website at http://www.museumsoftware.com/training.htm or contact our Training Coordinator, Jennessa Reed, by e-mail at training@museumsoftware.com or by phone at 800-562-6080. 3. PastPerfect Featured User: Guelph Museums, Guelph, Ontario, Canada Special thanks to Kathleen Wall, Assistant Curator, for contributing this month’s article! Guelph Museums consists of two sites in the city of Guelph, Ontario, Canada, which is about one hour west of Toronto. Guelph Civic Museum focuses on the history of the city, which was founded in 1827, and is housed in a heritage designated limestone building. Highlights of the collection include a great representation of early Guelph merchant crocks, a collection of designer textiles, and an extensive photograph and postcard collection of Guelph-related images. The second site is McCrae House, the birthplace of doctor, poet and soldier John McCrae who wrote the poem, “In Flanders Fields”. This museum is designated as a National Historic Site and displays artifacts, photographs and archives pertaining to John McCrae, his family, and WWI. Guelph Museums switched to PastPerfect in 2004 and have been converts ever since. The biggest draw for us was having a simple program that we could train volunteers and temporary staff to use but was still very powerful in searching and cataloguing. One of the best features for us is the MultiMedia/Digital Imaging Upgrade, which allows us to have images attached to our records. Because of this capability, we have jumped head first into digitizing our collection and are about one third of the way through. Many museums in Ontario have switched to PastPerfect over the last few years so we set up a User’s Group to share information. We meet twice a year to pass on tricks and tips and to share some of the forms and reports that each site has created. Guelph Museums receives about 20,000 visitors each year and we offer over 20 special events a year including our Poppy Push Plant Sale and our Robbie Burns Day. We also have several changing exhibits each year and a Children’s Gallery that looks at Guelph’s past through the eyes of a child. For more information on our museum, please check out our website www.guelph.ca/museum 4. Free Updates for PastPerfect Museum Software Did you know updates are available from our website for your PastPerfect Museum Software versions 3.5 and 4.0? These free updates are released approximately every two months and are available for download by going to www.museumsoftware.com/software_updates.htm. If you would rather receive a free update CD, please contact our Support Office toll free at 800-562-6080 or by e-mail at support@museumsoftware.com. PastPerfect Version 3.5 - Current Service Update Available: 3.5C2 While there are no new features in the version 3.5C2 update, there are service updates that have been requested by 3.5 users. PastPerfect Version 4 – New Update Available: 4.0D8 New features available in PastPerfect 4.0D8 include: Option in Objects catalog to sort and instant find by place of origin + command to expand notes field on accession screen Add year 2008 to Contacts dues and donations tracking Add dear formal and dear casual to Dues table for reporting Automatically create data backup when updating program Before reindexing, check for other users and display a list of users currently in the program Easy access to System Info screen by clicking Version# on main menu Expanded System Information screen Improved data backup functions for images and multimedia Limit image subfolders to 600MB New Backup Reminder screen that alerts if backup has not been made in last 3 days New command button on Library screen to list, enter or view additional sites associated with the record Option to Find by record# in Accessions and Contacts Option to make backups from backup reminder screen Save 30 hard drive backups Upon Exit remind users to make an external backup every week Upon Exit of program require users to make a backup at least every two weeks 5. PastPerfect-Online Featured Site! The April featured site is: Camden Area History Center – Camden, ME http://camdenarea.pastperfect-online.com/ Sharing your collection over the internet has never been easier! More collections research is being done from the comfort of home than ever before. To help cater to this trend, PastPerfect Software, Inc. created PastPerfect-Online. PastPerfect-Online is secure: PastPerfect-Online uploads a copy of the records, images and fields that you select into a searchable online database; confidential or sensitive information can remain private and under your control. To keep your images secure, PastPerfect-Online contains a watermarking tool that can watermark all of the images that you place online without affecting your permanent images. PastPerfect-Online is searchable: PastPerfect-Online makes researching your institution’s collections easier for visitors by enabling keyword and customizable advanced searches. Visitors can also research your collections with PastPerfect-Online’s Click and Search feature. Additionally, if a visitor desires to view the essence of your collection they can use the Random Images Search, which will display thumbnail images at random from all of your uploaded catalog records. PastPerfect-Online is easy to use: In addition to being safe and fully searchable, PastPerfect-Online is easy to use and update, since no web design or programming expertise is necessary! Once you select the records that you wish to appear online, the Web Publishing Wizard helps create the fields and implement the options for your site. Just create and upload the files and our support technicians take care of the rest! With PastPerfect-Online, you can also add your museum’s logo and design elements that compliment your existing website. Throughout the year we will be featuring PastPerfect-Online sites on our website at http://www.museumsoftware.com/client_list.htm. To view additional PastPerfect-Online sites, please visit www.PastPerfect-Online.com. If you would like additional information about PastPerfect-Online, please visit our website at http://www.museumsoftware.com/pponline.htm, download the information sheet from http://www.museumsoftware.com/downloads.htm, e-mail our sales staff at sales@museumsoftware.com or contact us at 800/562-6080, toll free. 6. Tech Tip: How Do I Sort PastPerfect Records by Object ID Number or Accession Number without Leading 0’s? 1. From the Main Menu, choose Setup. 2. Next, select Gen. Information. 3. In the middle column, find the Objectid# sort field. 4. Choose the Numeric setting rather than Alpha. 5. Also enter the separator used in your accession and object ID numbers. It might be a period or dash or other punctuation. (For example, if object ID numbers appear as 2007.1.1, the separator is a period.) 6. Exit from General Information. 7. If everyone has closed out of PastPerfect and a backup has been created, click Reindex on the Main Menu. On the Reindex screen, make sure "Rebuild Catalogs" is checked off, in addition to the other default selections. 8. Click "Start Reindex Now". When the reindex finished, Exit from the Reindex screen. 9. Select either Accession or one of your Catalogs (Objects, Photos, Archives and Library). 10. In the upper right of the screen, find the “Sort by” button. 11. In the Accession catalog, choose the “Accessn(num)” to sort numerically by Accession#. 12. In the Objects, Photos, Archives, or Library catalogs, choose “Objectid(num)” to sort records numerically by the object ID number or “Accessn(num)” to sort records numerically by Accession#. 13. Please note that you have changed the “Sort by” in one catalog. You will need to select numeric sorting for each catalog, as desired. Please contact the PastPerfect operations support team at 800-562-6080 if you have any questions. We are happy to help! This month’s tip was created in response to a Frequently Asked Question (F.A.Q.). This and other F.A.Q.s may be found under the Support portion of our website. F.A.Q.s answer some of the most common questions in the areas of Operations, Collections, System Requirements, Contact Management, Conversions, Virtual Exhibit, PastPerfect Online, as well as Errors and Technical Support. Check it out! http://www.museumsoftware.com/support/faq.htm If you have comments or suggestions for future additions to the F.A.Q. page please e-mail betsy@museumsoftware.com. 7. Contact Information Address: 300 North Pottstown Pike, Suite 200 Exton, PA 19341 Website: www.MuseumSoftware.com Sales & Product Info: 800-562-6080 or sales@museumsoftware.com Support: 800-562-6080 or support@museumsoftware.com Training: 800-562-6080 or training@museumsoftware.com Data Conversions: 800-562-6080 or conversions@museumsoftware.com