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Conservators at advanced museum laboratories around the world have been
at the forefront in developing laser technology and high quality digital
imagery, and the international conservation community has been a leader
in establishing Internet resources for sharing up-to-date technical
information. Their success, growing out of specific needs, demonstrates
the importance of discipline-specific resources for museum research
and public programs.
Especially as web standards are being adopted, often with little
involvement of discipline-specific users, the unique character of
many museum collections, ranging from rare works of art to objects
of everyday use and specimens of the natural world, is in danger of
being homogenized and the discipline-specific needs of their staffs
and publics overlooked. Because museums are engaged in archaeological
excavations and natural history studies in many parts of the world,
these needs also impact the growing industry in cultural and environmental
tourism, a major opportunity for public education.
This paper will take the fields of conservation and historic preservation
as a case example of the need for discipline-specific resources and
will review the most advanced uses and future potential of museum
sites in this field. It will conclude with a presentation of several
model web pages which I am currently developing as a demonstration
of the potential of the web for research and public education in this
fast growing field.
Last modified: April 10, 1998. This file can be found below http://www.archimuse.com/mw98/
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