Digitisation – Bringing BT Digital Archives to a computer near you

The BT Archive is held, with limited public access, in central London and is by any standard a collection of national and international importance, recognised by UNESCO. This large and remarkable collection details the history of Britain’s leading role in the development of telecommunications and the impact of this technology on society.

We have catalogued, digitised and developed a searchable online archive of almost half a million photographs, images, documents and correspondence assembled by BT and its predecessors over 165 years.

At this seminar we will show you how we worked together to make this happen, the challenges we faced when digitising the images and records, and the ways we used innovative gaming technology to bring the digitised archives to the public in an exciting new way.

The digitisation of a significant proportion of the Archive will allow teachers, students, researchers and the general public in the UK and overseas to gain easier access to our scientific and cultural telecommunications heritage, enabling them to utilise the archive for studies and leisure from anywhere in the world. Digitisation of the Archives will also ensure the continued preservation of the collections in digital as well as analogue format.

You'll also learn about the work of the academics on the project team to incorporate case studies on linguistics, problem -based learning scenarios and design to enhance the learning experience of users.

JISC funding has facilitated Coventry University, BT and The National Archives to bring together their unique expertise to make this happen.

Register now and be the first people to learn about our experiences.

If you have any questions, please contact Darshna Patel on dpatel@cad.coventry.ac.uk