Tuesday 9 February 2016

Gigapixel Photography - An Introductory Guide To The Photography, The Creation Of Panoramas And Interactive Virtual Tours


The Royal Commission has been trialing the use of Gigapixel photography to present and virtually interact with sites and landscapes across Wales. Our biggest project to date has been ‘Digital Dissent’, the creation of a 'virtual museum' of Nonconformity in Wales. Here Gigapixel photography was used to create panoramic images that form the basis for virtual interactive tours of four chapels. This workshop provides an introductory guide to Gigapixel - what it is, how to get started, the processes involved and the lessons we’ve learnt.

http://www.welshchapels.org/media/tours/Bethania%20Tour/Bethania%20Tour.html


Tanysgrifiwch i Newyddion Treftadaeth Cymru a chofrestrwch ar gyfer yr RSS porthiant llawn: cliciwch y botwm RSS hwn Tanysgrifiwch i Newyddion Treftadaeth Cymru a thanysgrifiwch!

Monday 8 February 2016

Gigapixel Photography


A Gigapixel image is one comprising of billions of pixels, enabling you to view detail without the degradation you would see in a normal photograph. Current technology for creating such high-resolution images involves stitching together and rendering a mosaic of digital photographs to create one image - the world’s largest photo to date, that of Mont Blanc, was shot in 2015 and comprises of 70,0000 images and 365 billion pixels, if printed the photo would be 98 metres long and 23 metres high.

The use of Gigapixel photography in heritage is growing and can be undertaken using a standard digital camera and workstation. High-resolution images can be created for landscapes and individual sites as well as documents (e.g. manuscripts and maps). There is also great potential in using these images to create interactive virtual tours.


Tanysgrifiwch i Newyddion Treftadaeth Cymru a chofrestrwch ar gyfer yr RSS porthiant llawn: cliciwch y botwm RSS hwn Tanysgrifiwch i Newyddion Treftadaeth Cymru a thanysgrifiwch!

Friday 5 February 2016

Recalibrating Relationships: Bringing Cultural Heritage and People Together in a Changing Europe


Professor Neil Forbes, Coventry University, will be at Digital Past 2016 to discuss some of the important changes which are impacting on cultural heritage in the contemporary world; research based on the work undertaken by RICHES - Renewal, Innovation, and Change: Heritage and European Society, a project funded by the European Commission's Seventh Framework programme. The project's main objective is to reduce the distance between people and culture, re-calibrating the relationship between heritage professionals and heritage users in order to maximise cultural creativity and ensure that all of Europe can benefit from the social and economic potential of cultural heritage.



Cultural heritage is made, held, collected, curated, exhibited, or simply exists in many areas. In this context, it is possible to speak of 'decentering' culture and cultural heritage away from institutional structures towards the individual. The nature of change brought about by the pace and scope of developments in digital technology is unprecedented. With the advent of digitisation, what demands have arisen in relation to how we understand, collect and make available cultural heritage? In what ways is the individual forcing a rethinking of the institution, and how can the later renew and remake themselves? What hierarchies of knowledge, expertise and authority in cultural heritage are being disrupted, transformed or undermined by the digital? 






Beyond this, the talk will consider how citizens can play a co-creative role in cultural heritage, the significance of identity and 'belonging', and the importance of cultural heritage as a force in economic development. Researchers as well as policy makers, funding bodies and managers of cultural heritage institutions and sector professionals are all challenged by these questions as they engage with the transmission and exploitation of cultural heritage. The talk will present evidence and recommendations emerging from the research undertaken and is located within the broad context of debates and discussion about the value, preservation, promotion and future of Europe's cultural heritage. 

Prosiect Arloesol I Ddigido Holl Fapiau Degwm Cymru Yw Cynefin


Prosiect arloesol i ddigido holl fapiau degwm Cymru yw Cynefin. Caiff ei ariannu’n bennaf gan Gronfa Dreftadaeth y Loteri a’i weinyddu gan Archifau Cymru. Gwneir y rhan fwyaf o’r gwaith gan Lyfrgell Genedlaethol Cymru (LlGC) gan ddefnyddio ei chasgliad o fapiau degwm, sydd bron yn gyflawn, ac mae’n gofyn am gryn ymdrech gadwraethol.

Defnyddir techneg arbennig i wneud y gwaith digido: caiff mapiau mawr eu gosod ar wal grom fagnetig a thynnir eu llun ar gydraniad uchel. Mae hyn yn cynhyrchu delweddau o ansawdd uchel iawn. Mae 800 map o gyfanswm o ryw 1200 wedi’u digido eisoes.

Mae’r holl fapiau a gynhyrchwyd ar gael ar-lein ar wefan cynefin.wales, ochr yn ochr â delweddau o’r holl ddogfennau rhaniad degwm. I gael y gwerth mwyaf posibl o’r adnodd hwn, mae’r wefan yn cynnwys swyddogaethau i drawsgrifio’r mapiau a’r dogfennau drwy gymorth torfol, gyda’r nod o wneud yr holl ddata yn chwiliadwy.

 
Mae’r casgliad cyfan hwn o fapiau degwm wedi’u digido yn cynnig cyfle gwych i edrych ar Gymru yn y 1840au mewn ffordd fwy cyfannol nad oedd yn ymarferol o’r blaen. Nid gweld rheilffyrdd ar fap yw’r unig beth y gallwch ei wneud, gallwch hefyd weld sut y datblygodd y rheilffyrdd. Gallwch weld bod rheilffordd Taf Merthyr eisoes wedi’i chwblhau a bod y lleill, yn mynd i’r dwyrain a’r gorllewin, yn y broses o gael eu hadeiladu. Roedd rhai rheilffyrdd hen iawn yn Llanelli, Abertawe ac ardaloedd diwydiannol eraill, sydd wedi diflannu erbyn hyn. Roedd hefyd rwydwaith o gamlesi a ffyrdd wedi’u rheoli gan dollbyrth. Gall hyn oll gael ei archwilio’n rhwydd yn awr gan ddefnyddio map degwm digidol Cymru.

Mae gan y cyfoeth o wybodaeth a drawsgrifiwyd eisoes botensial enfawr ar gyfer ymchwil a gwneud cysylltiadau â deunydd archifol arall. Datgelir natur cymdeithas, y ffordd nad oedd y rhan fwyaf o bobl yn berchen ar y tir lle roeddynt yn byw. Y nifer bach o dirfeddianwyr mawr oedd y bobl a oedd yn cyfrif, er enghraifft, hwy oedd yr unig bobl bron a gâi bleidleisio. Dyma gyfnod gwrthryfel y Siartwyr a therfysgoedd Beca.
Rhoddir cryn bwyslais ar greu map hawdd ei defnyddio ac ar adborth defnyddwyr, a cheir agweddau gwirfoddoli a marchnata cryf, sy’n cynnig ateb deniadol a chynaliadwy sy’n dod â manteision tymor-hir.

Mae’r prosiect yn cynnwys partneriaid ym maes archifau ar draws Cymru a bydd ffrwyth y gwaith yn cael ei gynnwys ar Gasgliad y Werin Cymru.

Rhyngwyneb daearyddol fydd y wefan derfynol yn LlGC a bydd yn ddigon hyblyg i arddangos rhannau eraill o gasgliad y Llyfrgell, gan weddnewid cyfleoedd mynediad ac ymchwil.



Tanysgrifiwch i Newyddion Treftadaeth Cymru a chofrestrwch ar gyfer yr RSS porthiant llawn: cliciwch y botwm RSS hwn Tanysgrifiwch i Newyddion Treftadaeth Cymru a thanysgrifiwch!
Booking closes today!

Registration for Digital Past will close at the end of today, so make sure that you go to Eventbrite and register before 5pm. 

There is a fantastic line-up of speakers and workshops on our programme, as well as a range of exhibition stands and lots of opportunity for discussion and networking. 

The St George's Hotel has been voted AA's Hotel of the Year for Wales 2015-2016, so take a look at the menu for our conference dinner which will take place on the evening of the 10th. 

We very much look forward to welcoming you to beautiful Llandudno and Digital Past 2016!


Thursday 4 February 2016

Mapio’n Ddigidol Dreftadaeth Lenyddol Caeredin: James Loxley (Prifysgol Caeredin)


Lle hynod o lenyddol yw Caeredin – yn wir, hi oedd y ddinas gyntaf i gael ei dynodi’n Ddinas Llenyddiaeth y Byd UNESCO, rhwydwaith sydd bellach yn cynnwys Prâg, Heidelberg, Dulyn a Melbourne (a Norwich. Peidiwch ag anghofio Norwich.). Mae iddi dreftadaeth hir fel man geni a chartref awduron yn cynnwys Walter Scott, Robert Burns, Robert Louis Stevenson, Muriel Spark a J. K. Rowling. Gall ymwelwyr grwydro drwy ‘Makars’ Court’, a galw heibio Amgueddfa’r Awduron.

Yn fwy na hyn, mae Caeredin wedi cael ei defnyddio’n aml yn lleoliad ar gyfer gweithiau grymus a phoblogaidd, o Heart of Midlothian gan Scott i nofelau a straeon byrion Irvine Welsh a llyfrau Rebus Ian Rankin. Dinas wedi’i hadeiladu o’r gair ysgrifenedig yn ogystal â cherrig yw hi.

Prosiect ar y cyd rhwng ysgolheigion llenyddol, cyfrifiadurwyr sy’n arbenigo mewn cloddio testun, ac arbenigwyr delweddu gwybodaeth yw prosiect Palimpsest. Ei nod oedd darganfod ffordd newydd o gyrchu a rhyngweithio gyda’r dreftadaeth gyfoethog hon. Gan ddefnyddio technegau cloddio testun a geo-leoli ar gasgliadau mawr o weithiau wedi’u digido, a chanolbwyntio ar enwau lleoedd fel marcwyr sy’n dangos cysylltiad llyfr â lle, creodd y tîm gronfa ddata o 46,000 o ddetholiadau o fwy na 500 o weithiau sy’n defnyddio Caeredin yn lleoliad mewn rhyw ffordd neu’i gilydd. Aeth y tîm ati hefyd i greu offer delweddu arloesol a fyddai’n cynnig cyfle i ddefnyddwyr ryngweithio gyda’r data mewn gwahanol ffyrdd. Er i’r prosiect ddechrau fel cysyniad academaidd, gyda nifer o heriau technegol i’w goresgyn, y bwriad fu darparu’r adnoddau ar gyfer defnydd llawer ehangach.

Yng nghynhadledd Gorffennol Digidol eleni, bydd James Loxley yn disgrifio’r heriau a wynebwyd yn ystod y prosiect, a’r hyn a ddysgwyd wrth adeiladu a defnyddio’r adnoddau ar-lein a grëwyd. Bydd yn rhoi sylw hefyd i ddatblygiadau yn y dyfodol, wrth iddynt gynyddu galluoedd yr adnoddau ac ymateb i adborth defnyddwyr.



Tanysgrifiwch i Newyddion Treftadaeth Cymru a chofrestrwch ar gyfer yr RSS porthiant llawn: cliciwch y botwm RSS hwn Tanysgrifiwch i Newyddion Treftadaeth Cymru a thanysgrifiwch!

3D Cultural Heritage Data: Improving access and exploitation

For over a decade the Discovery Programme has been capturing and modelling 3D data for a range of archaeological and cultural heritage sites including lidar, terrestrial laser scanning and close range documentation.  One of the issues in sharing this data with the wider community was the requirement of expensive IT equipment and software and the challenge in delivering large complex geometries which do not conform easily to primitive modelling.  Over the past four years the Discovery Programme has participated in several European projects including 3D-ICONS and ARIADNE which aim to open up access to this and other research data.

 3D model of Poulnabrone Portal Tomb, Ireland delivered online utilising SketchFab


Discovery Programme Technology Manager, Anthony Corns, will explore the processing pipeline developed by the Discovery Programme in making complex 3D structure available to the public using a combination of gaming modelling and online WebGL 3D viewers. An alternative pipeline will also be outlined which utilised the 3D media service developed by CNR-ISTI as part of the ARIADNE project which is more focussed upon reuse of 3D data by researchers.

                                                Internal view of Knowth passage tomb utilising Unity gaming development tools


The 3D-Icons project officially ended as an EU funded project in March 2015. However, the Discovery Programme has since taken the content produced as part of this project and looked to exploit it with several sectors, including:

Research:  How do we ensure that 3D data is utilised for scholarly research by a profession which may be averse to utilising new technologies?

Tourism:  Development of content to improve the tourist experience at cultural heritage sites, including the Brú na Bóinne world heritage site where the Discovery programme is currently developing an immersive experience for the Neolithic passage tomb at Knowth.

Education: Utilising 3D models as a teaching resources in secondary schools both in History but also across the curriculum

Creative Industries: Developing links and relationships with organisations that can utilise cultural heritage datasets using innovative and state of the art methods.

This paper will also comment on some of the challenges and opportunities that exist when working with this diverse range of sectors.