Databases: American History in Video: Free Access (During April, 2010) from Alexander Street Press
The team at Alexander Street Press in lovely Alexandria, Virginia are once again offering what they call "open access" to one of their databases. In other words, you can search, browse, view, etc. a complete database for free for a entire month.
This months selection (April, 2010), American History in Video, includes searchable access to thousands of hours of streaming video material from newsreels and many other historical film/video resources.
The "open access" period is from now through April 30, 2009. Again, access is free but you do need to register (it's fast).
Plenty (Understatement) of Content:
The collection, which was named both a 2009 Booklist Editor’s Choice selection and a 2009 Library Journal Best Reference, gives patrons at subscribing libraries access to a current total of more than 4,000 complete newsreels and documentaries from leading video providers, including PBS, The History Channel, Bullfrog Films, California Newsreel, Media Rich Learning, and Documentary Educational Resources, among others. It will grow to include more than 5,000 video titles totaling more than 2,000 hours of footage.
Also Included Are:
+ Synchronized Transcripts
+ Create Customized Playlists (Share Them, Place Them in Class Folder, etc.)
+ Exclusive Online Home to Newsreels from United News and Universal Newsreel
+ Visual tables of contents
+ Embeddable Video Player
Finally:
Search fields include historical event, era, date, place, historical figure, speaker, subject, video type, and years discussed.
Well we're off to try spend some search and viewing time with American History in Video. More later when we hope to write a review. One issue in creating and building this database was most likely not only finding and securing the content but also licensing all of it. Talk about a large challenge.
Here's a collection of reviews (via Alexander Street Press). Very positive comments from Choice, Booklist, Charleston Advisor, and others.
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