EAD - enabling armchair delivery : approaches to encoding finding aids at the University of Liverpool

EAD is increasingly being selected as the primary data format for constructing archival finding aids in the British Archive Community as the new technologies and know-how required to encode lists are being embraced in many repositories. One major problem facing archivists, though, is how to convert finding aids held in a variety of formats (including databases, word processed documents and paper lists with no machine readable form) into EAD. This article will discuss the methods used in Special Collections and Archives at the University of Liverpool Library in converting finding aids into EAD. Two main examples will be discussed: firstly, designing database output styles which automatically generate EAD tags to wrap around database fields using the ProCite bibliographic database and secondly, offshore keying of paper lists with the addition of basic EAD tags following a rigorous template designed by Special Collections and Archives staff. Both methods have proved effective and have facilitated the generation of EAD encoded lists for a number of our largest collections. Finally, there will be a brief discussion of our use of native EAD generation using AdeptEdit software and our continuing use of conversion methods.