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Frostburg State University Built a Public Digital Archive with Full Control Over How Their Collection is Displayed

With thousands of digitised photographs and no way to display them publicly, Frostburg State University’s Special Collections Librarian evaluated ContentDM, Preservica, and other platforms over the course of a year. Soutron won on customisation, giving FSU complete control over how their digital collection is searched and accessed.
Frostburg State University

Table of Contents

Introduction

Objectives

Key Outcomes

Solution

Summary

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How FSU Chose Soutron Over ContentDM and Preservica for a Customisable Digital Collections Portal

Liza Zakharova, Special Collections Librarian and Archivist at Frostburg State University, needed a digital archive platform that gave her team full control over the public-facing search experience. Every other platform she evaluated during a year-long assessment fell short on customisation. Soutron delivered a fully configurable integrated search portal that FSU manages independently, starting with a searchable collection of digitised underground coal mine maps from Maryland’s Appalachian highlands.




Introduction

Frostburg State University (FSU) is a public university in Frostburg, Maryland. The university is the only four-year institution of the University System of Maryland west of the Baltimore-Washington passageway in the state’s Appalachian highland.

From its inaugural class of 57 students in 1902, Frostburg State University has grown to a present-day enrollment of more than 5,600 students, continuing its pursuit of excellence, providing a quality education that leads to real-world success.

Liza Zakharova
“Other products that I looked at didn’t offer the full customisation that Soutron does.”

Liza Zakharova

Special Collections Librarian / Archivist




Objectives

Frostburg Archive Materials With no way to display their collection of digitised photos, the library at FSU embarked on a digital collection project to source a software solution that would provide a way for the public to view the collection.

Liza Zakharova, Special Collections Librarian / Archivist, undertook the task of evaluating digital collection archive systems. Over the course of a year, she looked at ContentDM, Preservica, and other solutions including Soutron.

Soutron stood out thanks to its customisation capabilities. “I liked that I could create a customised digital collections portal,” states Liza. “Other products that I looked at didn’t offer the full customisation that Soutron does.”

With the Soutron integrated search portal, Frostburg has complete control over how their digital collection is displayed and accessed, enabling the university to improve user experience when searching their digital collections, thus enhancing library services.


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Key Outcomes

  • Full customisation of the public-facing digital collections portal. Unlike ContentDM, Preservica, and other evaluated platforms, Soutron gave FSU complete control over how their digital collection is displayed, searched, and accessed by the public, matching the university’s specific user experience requirements.
  • Digitised coal mine maps made publicly searchable. The initial collection launch featured an impressive archive of underground coal mine maps from Maryland’s local Appalachian highlands, now fully searchable and publicly accessible through the Soutron-powered search portal.
  • A platform built to scale with the collection. The digital archive was designed from the start to grow, with plans to add thousands of digitised photographs, AV materials, campus publications, and local historical artefacts already in development at implementation.
  • One year of evaluation led to a clear choice. Liza Zakharova spent a year assessing digital collection platforms before selecting Soutron, specifically citing customisation capability as the deciding factor that no other vendor could match.

Solution

The initial collection features an impressive collection of digitised underground coal mine maps from the local Appalachian highlands that can be searched and publicly accessed.

After initial implementation, future plans are to build up the digital collection, including adding thousands of digitised photos, AV materials, campus publications, in addition to local historical artefacts the library owns.

The Soutron powered, Frostburg University digital collection Search Portal can be accessed here: www.soutron.com/frostburg

Frostburg Search Portal

Summary

To find out more about Frostburg State University, visit their website for details: www.frostburg.edu To find out how you can migrate to a fast, secure, cloud-based information management system to support your organisation, book a 20 minute discovery call with us today, see below.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Can Soutron compete with ContentDM and Preservica for a university digital archive project?

Yes. Frostburg State University evaluated ContentDM, Preservica, and other digital archive platforms over the course of a year before selecting Soutron. The deciding factor was customisation: Soutron offered full control over the public-facing digital collections portal that no other evaluated platform could match.

Can Soutron provide a public-facing digital collections portal for a university special collections library?

Yes. Soutron's integrated search portal gives universities complete control over how their digital collections are displayed and accessed by the public. Frostburg State University uses Soutron to provide public access to their digitised archive including coal mine maps, photographs, AV materials, and local historical artefacts.

Can Soutron handle a growing digital archive that includes photographs, AV materials, and historical artefacts?

Yes. Soutron's digital archive platform is designed to scale as collections grow. Frostburg State University launched with digitised coal mine maps and plans to expand the archive to include thousands of digitised photographs, AV materials, campus publications, and local historical artefacts within the same platform.

Does Soutron give university libraries full control over their digital collections search portal without vendor involvement?

Yes. Soutron's integrated search portal is fully configurable by library staff. Frostburg State University manages how their digital collection is displayed, searched, and accessed independently, without needing to go back to Soutron for routine changes to the portal.

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About the Author
The Soutron editorial team covers archive, library and information management for specialist organisations. Our writers work alongside our product and client teams to make sure everything we publish reflects real-world practice, drawn from over 40 years of experience in the industry.
Soutron Editorial Team