SHERELLE RODGERS
Oct 1, 2020
Goal:
THE GOAL OF THE JAPANESE AMBASSADOR DOLL MAP IS TO OFFER AN EASY AND ACCESSIBLE TOOL THAT ALLOW THE USER TO INTERACT AND VISUALIZE THE LOCATION OF THESE DOLLS.
Product:
THE JAPANESE AMBASSADOR DOLL MAP IS AN INTERACTIVE MAP CREATED THROUGH MAPHUB. IT IS APART OF THE SILENT ENVOYS WEBSITE CREATED TO MAKE IT AN APPROACHABLE TOOL WITHOUT DISTRACTIONS. IN FURTHER DEVELOPMENT THE FOCUS WILL BE PUT ON ATTAINABILITY AND SIMPLICITY OF THIS PRODUCT.
Competitive Advantages:
THERE ARE FEW LOCATIONS WHERE THE FULL LIST OF FRIENDSHIP DOLLS HAVE BEEN MADE AVAILABLE. WIKIPEDIA HAS A NOW OUT OF DATE LIST POSTED ON THERE WEBSITE HERE. ANOTHER WEBSITE WOULD BE BILL GORDONS WEBSITE, WHILE HE DOES HAVE A LIST OF DOLL LOCATIONS; IT HAS NOT BEEN UPDATED SINCE JANUARY 15, 2012. NOT ONLY ARE THESE WEBSITES OUTDATED IN INFORMATION , THEY ARE ALSO OUTDATED IN STYLE. MY APPROACH WILL BE TO UPDATE THE LIST AND IMAGE OF THE DOLL COMMUNITY.
Proposal
The purpose of the Japanese Doll map is to allow the public better access to information about these dolls. The problem faced is that the information for these dolls has yet to be updated and put into a convenient location that smoothly and directly displays information. My solution to this problem is to develop a clean and comfortable website that houses a clear list and map that allows for easy access.
Japanese Ambassador Doll history is not one that is often put into the spotlight. Meaning that it has been left in the shadows pertaining to website development and research. While these dolls are not popular they exist in museums and public institutions , therefore there should be better access to the information and location of these dolls for research and pleasure purposes. I hope to make the research information available as well as a location that promotes modernity.
The way in which I plan to develop this project begins with research. Tools created by Alan Scott Pate and other doll collectors/historians will be accessed. I will be going through the list of the 58 Japanese Ambassador Dolls and finding their locations through various museum websites. Because many of these dolls have been misplaced , it will not be possible to locate of the dolls.
The software I plan to use is Wix.com and MapHub. Wix.com is a free to use website builder and MapHub is a free to use interactive map creator. Both of the websites are easy access and simple lay out. This is important to the demographics that I am working with, which are older and not technologically savvy.
At the end of this project I plan to deliver a functionable tool that can be used by researchers, historians, and doll collectors alike. If this project became an archival source, it would have to be continually updated to match the locations of the dolls as they travel.
Final Digital Archival Proposal
The purpose of the Japanese Doll map is to allow the public better access to information about these dolls. The problem faced is that the information for these dolls has yet to be updated and put into a convenient location that smoothly and directly displays information. My solution to this problem is to develop a clean and comfortable website that houses a clear list and map that allows for easy access. I hope to make the research information available as well as a location that promotes modernity.
The way in which I plan to develop this project begins with research. Tools created by Alan Scott Pate and other doll collectors/historians will be accessed. I will be going through the list of the 58 Japanese Ambassador Dolls and finding their locations through various museum websites. Because many of these dolls have been misplaced, it will not be possible to locate all of the dolls.
Update
The final archival piece I will be adding to this platform is a web collection of Japanese doll collector and history sites. This grouping of information will be added to support the users of this platform. So not only will they be able to hunt down their Friendship dolls and information needs. They will also be able to find other sites carrying context and supporting data. These websites would include many of the sites used to locate the Friendship dolls but also websites with general Ningyo history. Japanese doll collector websites will also be added because they are great resources for provenance and doll collecting tips. This gives an all-around informational experience, so once the visitors to the website have questions, they can always look to the web archives for answers.
Summary
The summary of this project is that I am building a locator website. This website helps the user find the information on the Friendship dolls along with location and contact information. The addition of the website collection archive is to give the users more information about Japanese dolls and their history. This tool can and will assist in research and other informational needs.
Technology
The software I plan to use is Wix.com and MapHub. Wix.com is a free to use website builder. Wixs’ platform is like WordPress but there are a lot more tools available to create a more appealing and cleaner website. Its functions easier as you are given more reign over the website development and do not have to stick so closely to the themes provided. It is not so blog based and that gives you better control over where and how the content displayed. The Wix community forum is active and extremely helpful with many different responses from certified Wix developers or employees. The forum is here: https://www.wix-forum-community.com/forum.
MapHub is a free to use interactive map creator. The preference of MapHub over google maps is because the amount of information needed to put in the maps. With google maps, I’m only able to put the places title. With Maphub, I can add place title, general description and add links to the map. I prefer this over google maps because it gives the user direct access to the destinations, instead of clicking the map and having to google the website or google phone number and other information. This alleviates that process. This makes for a cleaner and easier experience on my part but also from the users’ part. Map hub also has a forum for questions here: https://forum.maphub.net/.
Current Standing
As for my efforts, the project is still being worked on and built. The doll finding process is slow because it requires a lot of internet digging and reading Japanese. I have found 14 of the 58 dolls so far. Once I can locate the majority, I will add them to the Wix site and build the map. The website is here: .https://japanambassadordoll.wixsite.com/hist690. I will be working on it continuously throughout the next few weeks, so many changes may happen since the turning in of this assignment. As of this moment, I do not have any questions but if any arise, I will be sure to make contact.
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