<html>
<head>
<meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8">
</head>
<body text="#000000" bgcolor="#FFFFFF">
Hello,<br>
<br>
Each of the collection management tools has it's strengths, and it
depends on which features you want and how you will be using it.<br>
<br>
For instance, for the University of Michigan's museums which are in
the College of Literature, Science and Arts (LSA), we chose to use
Specify, because it had the full set of collection management
features that we were wanting (tracking of interactions like loans,
accessions, gifts... as well as identifying the collection object
storage areas, and their identifications over time, et cetera), and
it has really good documentation and training videos.<br>
<br>
From an IT perspective, it's open-source, so we have access to the
code (if we need it), and we run it on our own servers, which allows
us to manage the release of updates and control the release of
records via our own IPT server ( <a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="https://ipt.lsa.umich.edu/">https://ipt.lsa.umich.edu/</a> ). This
makes our records immediately available via GBIF, and harvestable
via iDigBio, or any other data-consolidator. <br>
<br>
Running Specify (the local client, 6, and the web version, 7) on our
own servers allows us to integrate the databases into our
University's single-sign-on security via LDAP (we haven't done it
yet, but we could). Also, Specify uses a traditional
relational-design structure for it's data tables, which makes it
understandable to anyone who is familiar with a normalized
data-structure. The Specify forms, reports and queries are all
modifiable by the users, which enables quick results when needing
changes. Lastly, the team at the Specify Consortium has been really
great to work with... very responsive. In the interest of full
disclosure, we like Specify so much that we joined the Consortium.<br>
<br>
The Specify Consortium can also host Specify 7 databases on their
servers, but we wanted to hold our data in our environment, then
share it out with the world. They also have a way of sharing records
out, an IPT equivalent, but I don't know much about that. I'm sure
that their website, and support people, would be able to tell you
about all of their features.<br>
<br>
We currently have ten (10) collections using Specify (not all going
out via the IPT), and we should have four (4) more by the end of the
year; so, if you have any questions about our set-up please don't
hesitate to ask.<br>
<br>
To make your decision, though, you might consider which features are
important to you (do you want to track loans, et cetera, in your
database), what sort of resources you have available (do you have IT
support and resources), then create a spreadsheet that compares how
the various solutions fulfill your needs.<br>
<br>
Yours,<br>
John Torgersen<br>
Database Administrator<br>
UM LSA Technology Services Infrastructure<br>
<br>
<div class="moz-cite-prefix">On 3/13/2019 11:28 AM, Alejandro Catalá
Jimenez wrote:<br>
</div>
<blockquote type="cite"
cite="mid:CAOFzLNe5Td=LCNcOVRY=6z-_SnrP1ne_iVLn_uUn4DaS=jR3bw@mail.gmail.com">
<meta http-equiv="content-type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8">
<div dir="ltr">
<div class="gmail-nova-o-stack__item"
style="margin:0px;padding:7.5px
0px;color:rgb(17,17,17);font-family:Roboto,Arial,sans-serif;font-size:12px">
<h1 class="gmail-nova-e-text gmail-nova-e-text--size-xl
gmail-nova-e-text--family-sans-serif
gmail-nova-e-text--spacing-none
gmail-nova-e-text--color-inherit"
style="color:inherit;margin:0px;line-height:1.2;font-size:1.375rem;font-weight:400;border:0px;text-transform:inherit;padding:0px">What
is the best collection management software for collections
in natural history museums?</h1>
</div>
<div class="gmail-nova-o-stack__item"
style="margin:0px;padding:7.5px
0px;color:rgb(17,17,17);font-family:Roboto,Arial,sans-serif;font-size:12px">
<div>
<div class="gmail-nova-o-stack gmail-nova-o-stack--gutter-m
gmail-nova-o-stack--spacing-none
gmail-nova-o-stack--no-gutter-outside"
style="list-style:none;margin:0px;padding:0px">
<div class="gmail-nova-o-stack__item"
style="margin:0px;padding:0px 0px 10px">
<div class="gmail-nova-e-text gmail-nova-e-text--size-m
gmail-nova-e-text--family-sans-serif
gmail-nova-e-text--spacing-none
gmail-nova-e-text--color-inherit
gmail-nova-e-expandable-text"
style="border:0px;text-transform:inherit;margin:0px;padding:0px;color:inherit;font-size:0.875rem;line-height:1.3">
<div class="gmail-nova-e-expandable-text__container"
style="">
<div><span class="gmail-Linkify">
<div class="gmail-nova-e-text
gmail-nova-e-text--size-m
gmail-nova-e-text--family-sans-serif
gmail-nova-e-text--spacing-s
gmail-nova-e-text--color-inherit
gmail-redraft-text"
style="border:0px;text-transform:inherit;margin:0px;padding:0px;color:inherit;font-size:0.875rem;line-height:1.3">I´m
working at the Natural History Museum of
Santiago de Cuba and I´m looking for the best
fee collection management software for both
zoological and botanical collections. We want
no just have our collection properly organize
but also make it visible through the world.
I´ve been hearing about Specify, Symbiota and
Biota and I´m not sure which one is the most
efficient or if there is any other who can be
better.</div>
<div class="gmail-nova-e-text
gmail-nova-e-text--size-m
gmail-nova-e-text--family-sans-serif
gmail-nova-e-text--spacing-s
gmail-nova-e-text--color-inherit
gmail-redraft-text"
style="border:0px;text-transform:inherit;margin:0px;padding:0px;color:inherit;font-size:0.875rem;line-height:1.3">Thanks!!</div>
</span></div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
<div><br>
</div>
-- <br>
<div dir="ltr" class="gmail_signature"
data-smartmail="gmail_signature">
<div dir="ltr">
<div>
<div dir="ltr">
<div>
<div dir="ltr">
<div>
<div dir="ltr">
<div>
<div dir="ltr">
<div>
<div dir="ltr">
<div>
<div dir="ltr">
<div>
<div dir="ltr"><b>Alejandro Catalá
Jimenez</b><br>
Licenciado en Biología</div>
<div dir="ltr">Centro Oriental de
Ecosistemas y Biodiversidad
(BIOECO)</div>
<div dir="ltr"><span>Departamento
de Biología y Geografía.
Universidad de Oriente (Cuba)<br>
</span></div>
<div>ResearchGate:<br>
</div>
<div dir="ltr"><a
href="https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Alejandro_Catala_Jimenez"
target="_blank"
moz-do-not-send="true">https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Alejandro_Catala_Jimenez</a>
<br>
</div>
<div>Academia:</div>
<div><a
href="https://uo.academia.edu/AlejandroCatal%C3%A1Jimenez"
target="_blank"
moz-do-not-send="true">https://uo.academia.edu/AlejandroCatal%C3%A1Jimenez</a></div>
<div>Linkedin:</div>
<div><a
href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/alejandro-catal%C3%A1-jimenez-97232a122/"
target="_blank"
moz-do-not-send="true">https://www.linkedin.com/in/alejandro-catal%C3%A1-jimenez-97232a122/</a>
<br>
</div>
<div>Mendeley:</div>
<div><a
href="https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Alejandro_Catala_Jimenez"
target="_blank"
moz-do-not-send="true">https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Alejandro_Catala_Jimenez</a><br>
</div>
<div dir="ltr"><br>
<center><i>Choose a job you
love, and you will never
have to work a day in your
life</i></center>
<br>
<i>
<p align="right">Confucius</p>
</i></div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
<br>
<fieldset class="mimeAttachmentHeader"></fieldset>
<pre class="moz-quote-pre" wrap="">_______________________________________________
Nhcoll-l mailing list
<a class="moz-txt-link-abbreviated" href="mailto:Nhcoll-l@mailman.yale.edu">Nhcoll-l@mailman.yale.edu</a>
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="https://mailman.yale.edu/mailman/listinfo/nhcoll-l">https://mailman.yale.edu/mailman/listinfo/nhcoll-l</a>
_______________________________________________
NHCOLL-L is brought to you by the Society for the Preservation of
Natural History Collections (SPNHC), an international society whose
mission is to improve the preservation, conservation and management of
natural history collections to ensure their continuing value to
society. See <a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="http://www.spnhc.org">http://www.spnhc.org</a> for membership information.
Advertising on NH-COLL-L is inappropriate.
</pre>
</blockquote>
<br>
</body>
</html>