From: "Seymour, Janet I - WHS" <Janet.Seymour@wisconsinhistory.org> Date: Wed, 15 Sep 2010 13:22:03 -0500 Subject: FW: PastPerfect Newsletter Sep-2010 Message-ID: <488E289A5C909049B0E55F6B651B5B3501E8E1AE8996@MEWMAD0PC01G02.accounts.wistate.us>
________________________________
From: PastPerfect Newsletter [news@museumsoftware.com]
Sent: Wednesday, September 15, 2010 11:55 AM
To: Seymour, Janet I - WHS
Subject: PastPerfect Newsletter Sep-2010
[http://www.museumsoftware.com/graphics/pagebanner_reg.gif]<http://www.muse
umsoftware.com/index.shtml>
PastPerfect Newsletter September - October 2010
1. Nomenclature 3.0 Integrated into PastPerfect 5 <https://mail.wisconsin.g
ov/owa/?ae=Item&t=IPM.Note&id=RgAAAACfkRQA2vsNT5uZQR%2fhJSHDBwANAGCs6
EiqRpRW%2fJTq%2f3%2flAAAAAX9aAABIjiiaXJCQSbDlX2tlG1s1AejhromWAAAJ&a=Forwa
rd&cb=0#1>
2. PastPerfect 5.0 Training - Online Classes this Fall<https://mail.wiscons
in.gov/owa/?ae=Item&t=IPM.Note&id=RgAAAACfkRQA2vsNT5uZQR%2fhJSHDBwANA
GCs6EiqRpRW%2fJTq%2f3%2flAAAAAX9aAABIjiiaXJCQSbDlX2tlG1s1AejhromWAAAJ&a=F
orward&cb=0#2>
3. Free Updates <https://mail.wisconsin.gov/owa/?ae=Item&t=IPM.Note&id
=RgAAAACfkRQA2vsNT5uZQR%2fhJSHDBwANAGCs6EiqRpRW%2fJTq%2f3%2flAAAAAX9aAABI
jiiaXJCQSbDlX2tlG1s1AejhromWAAAJ&a=Forward&cb=0#3>
4. We'll See You at the Conferences - AASLH/OMA and NEMA<https://mail.wisco
nsin.gov/owa/?ae=Item&t=IPM.Note&id=RgAAAACfkRQA2vsNT5uZQR%2fhJSHDBwA
NAGCs6EiqRpRW%2fJTq%2f3%2flAAAAAX9aAABIjiiaXJCQSbDlX2tlG1s1AejhromWAAAJ&a
=Forward&cb=0#4>
5. Did You Know?<https://mail.wisconsin.gov/owa/?ae=Item&t=IPM.Note&id
=RgAAAACfkRQA2vsNT5uZQR%2fhJSHDBwANAGCs6EiqRpRW%2fJTq%2f3%2flAAAAAX9aAABI
jiiaXJCQSbDlX2tlG1s1AejhromWAAAJ&a=Forward&cb=0#5>
6. Tech Tips - Using PastPerfect's Quick and Easy Backup Features<https://m
ail.wisconsin.gov/owa/?ae=Item&t=IPM.Note&id=RgAAAACfkRQA2vsNT5uZQR%2
fhJSHDBwANAGCs6EiqRpRW%2fJTq%2f3%2flAAAAAX9aAABIjiiaXJCQSbDlX2tlG1s1Aejhrom
WAAAJ&a=Forward&cb=0#6>
7. Contact Information<https://mail.wisconsin.gov/owa/?ae=Item&t=IPM.No
te&id=RgAAAACfkRQA2vsNT5uZQR%2fhJSHDBwANAGCs6EiqRpRW%2fJTq%2f3%2flAAAAAX9
aAABIjiiaXJCQSbDlX2tlG1s1AejhromWAAAJ&a=Forward&cb=0#7>
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1. Nomenclature 3.0 Integrated into PastPerfect 5
PastPerfect 5.0 incorporates the latest professional object naming and clas
sification system, Nomenclature 3.0 for Museum Cataloging. This is a greatl
y expanded and updated list of terms, with more than 5000 new names. Its ad
ditional hierarchical levels help catalogers find the right term and classi
fy each item’s function.
With the new lexicon, you can use more or less specific object names. If yo
u are unsure of an artifact’s exact use, you can enter a more general ter
m, and still classify it within the hierarchy. For example, if you have an
ax in the collection but don’t know how it was used, you can enter the mo
re general “Ax” as the Primary Term. When you later learn that it is an
ax for making barrels, you can edit the record and select “Ax, Cooper’
s” as the more specific object name.
Another useful feature with the new lexicon is the ability to enter multipl
e object names to cross reference artifacts and catalog object sets. This n
ew flexibility is described in more detail in the “Using Nomenclature 3.0
” section of the Nomenclature 3.0 for Museum Cataloging book. An example
of this is when cataloging a souvenir T-shirt, you can classify it as both
a Shirt in Clothing and a Souvenir in Memorabilia. This item will be discov
ered when you research souvenirs for an exhibit and T-shirts for an educati
onal program.
Nomenclature 3.0 is evolving. If you have questions or suggestions, please
use the Nomenclature 3.0 Community website http://aaslhcommunity.org/nomenc
lature/. Its forum gives you the opportunity to tap into decades of catalog
ing experience of the Nomenclature Committee and colleagues. You can also v
iew a tutorial and submit additions for the list.
Although we encourage Version 5.0 users to adopt Nomenclature 3.0 for objec
t naming, you can choose to continue using your current Lexicon.
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2. PastPerfect 5.0 Training -- Online classes this Fall
Have you wanted to attend a regional training, but were unable to travel to
a class or spend an entire day away from the museum? PastPerfect has the a
nswer! You can attend an online training class from the comfort of your com
puter. An experienced PastPerfect Trainer will demonstrate how to use PastP
erfect 5.0 to its full potential. You will be able to see the trainer’s P
astPerfect program on your own computer and hear the trainer online or over
a long distance conference call.
Upcoming online training classes:
"Cataloging Your Collections with PastPerfect 5.0"
October 19th, 20th & 21st, 9:30am to 12:00pm ET
One of the best assets an organization can have is consistent data entry of
the collection. You will learn easy and effective ways to maximize the dat
a entry process while keeping an eye on consistency. Instruction will inclu
de navigating the PastPerfect 5.0 program, basic and advanced cataloging, u
sing the new Nomenclature 3.0 with PastPerfect, the Accession process, mana
ging authority files, tips on researching, and keeping your data safe. Clas
s attendees will receive a FREE copy of the “Cataloging Your Collections
with PastPerfect 5.0” Training CD, which complements this course.
"Managing Contacts, Donations & Membership with PastPerfect 5.0"
November 16th, 17th & 18th, 9:30 am to 12:00pm ET
For most museums and organizations contact management is more than a full-t
ime job. This class will teach you how to streamline many of the tasks invo
lved in good contact management. Instruction will include creating contacts
and memberships, documenting donations, dues payments and volunteer hours,
and focusing mailings by creating Contact Lists and mail merge letters. Ti
ps on emailing contacts and keeping your data safe will also be discussed.
Class attendees will receive a FREE copy of the “Managing Contacts, Donat
ions and Membership with PastPerfect 5.0” Training CD, which complements
this course.
Online Training classes are priced at $69.00/person for AASLH Institutional
Members ($86.25/person for non-members). Seats for the classes are limited
, so please call us toll free at 1-800-562-6080 to sign up. For more inform
ation about PastPerfect Training opportunities, please visit our Training w
ebpage at www.museumsoftware.com/training.shtml<http://www.museumsoftware.c
om/training.shtml>.
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3. FREE Updates
PastPerfect updates are available as free downloads from our website, http:
//museumsoftware.com/softwareupdates.shtml. Please select the appropriate u
pdate for your PastPerfect version, complete the online form and save the f
ile to your computer's desktop. Before running an update, be sure to back u
p your data and close the PastPerfect program on all computers. Please foll
ow the more detailed instructions
on the download page.
Version 5.0a4 Update
This update was released September 8, 2010 and includes some significant ne
w features.
Contact Lists Enhancements:
* Fixed lists may now be used for Merging and Subtracting contact lists.
* After selecting a contact list, you can narrow the list by field range
s. The narrowed lists can be viewed and printed as a report or used to crea
te labels, letters, emails, etc.
* Your filter statement is saved when you create user defined contact li
sts.
New option for the Lexicon:
* You can now reassign a term in the Nomenclature 3.0 Lexicon
Version 4.0e3 Update
This update was released December 14, 2009 and includes:
* Ability to display and report on 2010 donations and dues payments
* Two new pledge reports -- Open Pledges and Overdue Pledges. Open Pledg
es lists all pledges with balances and enables you to sort them by the cont
act's last name, campaign, start date, last paid date or balance due. The O
verdue Pledges report provides a list of all open pledges where a payment h
as not been made by a date you specify.
If you have any questions about the update process, please call us toll fre
e 1-800-562-6080.
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4. We'll See You at the Conferences
AASLH and Oklahoma Museums Association Joint Conference
Oklahoma City, OK: September 23-24, 2010
We hope to see you in a couple of weeks at booth #28 across from the Networ
king Lounge.
New England Museum Association
Springfield, MA: November 4-5, 2010
Come visit with us at booth #44 by the Registration Desk on Thursday and Fr
iday. We are happy to share information about Version 5.0 and answer your P
astPerfect questions.
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5. Did you know?
PastPerfect 4.0 and 5.0 are compatible with 32-bit and 64-bit Windows opera
ting systems including: Windows XP, Windows Vista, Windows 7, Server 2003 a
nd Server 2008.
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6. Tech Tip - Don't forget about PastPerfect's quick and easy backup featur
es!
Backing up your data is one of the most important functions in maintaining
a collections management system. Having a current backup gives you peace of
mind in the event of computer hardware failure or other catastrophic event
. It takes only a few minutes to keep all of the hard work you have done in
PastPerfect safe.
We provide several options to help you create backups quickly and easily. F
irst, we recommend that you do a "Backup Data to Hard Drive" every day that
you use PastPerfect. This makes a zipped copy of your data at that moment
and stores it locally. This is an easy-to-access backup that is the first l
ine of defense.
We also advise making external backups - to CD, DVD, or removable drive. Th
is is the next line of defense in the event that the hard drive is not acce
ssible. You should make an external backup at least once a week, and we str
ongly suggest starting with a fresh CD or DVD. To avoid overwriting your ex
isting backups on a removable drive (such as an external hard drive or flas
h drive) we recommend renaming the files before creating the new Removable
Backup. Maintaining a library of PastPerfect backups over time ensures that
your data is protected.
PastPerfect 5.0:
All Backup options are easily accessible from the Main Menu.
Selecting Backup settings in version 5.0: You can enter the settings for yo
ur backups by going to Setup | Workstation Settings. You will find informat
ion on the Hard Drive Backup Folder directory path, and Removable and CD/DV
D drive letter settings. If you are using a flash drive or external hard dr
ive, choose the correct drive letter from the Removable Drive drop-down men
u. You may need to plug your drive into the USB port of your computer to fi
nd the assigned drive letter.
PastPerfect 4.0:
Click on the Backup button on the Main Menu and select the backup option(s)
you want to perform.
Choosing Backup settings in version 4.0: You can enter the settings for you
r backups by going to Setup | Gen. Information. You will find information o
n the Hard Drive Backup Folder directory path, and Removable and CD/DVD dri
ve letter settings. If you are using a flash drive or external hard drive,
choose the correct drive letter from the Removable Drive drop-down menu. Yo
u may need to plug your drive into the USB port of your computer to find th
e assigned drive letter.
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7. Contact Information
Address: 300 North Pottstown Pike, Suite 200, Exton, PA 19341
Website: www.MuseumSoftware.com<http://www.MuseumSoftware.com>
Sales & Product Information: 1-800-562-6080 or sales@museumsoftware.com<mai
lto:sales@museumsoftware.com>
Support: 1-800-562-6080 or support@museumsoftware.com<mailto:<mailto:support@museum
software.com>
Training: 1-800-562-6080 or training@museumsoftware.com<mailto:<mailto:training@mus
eumsoftware.com>
Data Conversions: 1-800-562-6080 or conversions@museumsoftware.com <mailto:
conversions@museumsoftware.com>
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