Hello Fellow TMS Users, 
 
We migrated our data to TMS in November of 1999.  Since then we've also updated our old systems documentation for data entry with the TMS screens and a blow by blow use of fields.  The documentation evolves as TMS changes, we install upgrades, and identify new areas of information to include in TMS. Our documentation is supplemented by guideline or syntax rules for things like entering dimensions, use of pre-fixes in constituent records, etc...  
 
In general the Registrar's Office will enter all "tombstone" or basic item description, copyright, accession, deaccession, values, locations as well as collections management information such as pending exhibitions, loans (outgoing and incoming) and shipping information.  Curatorial staff add everything else, including exhibition history, provenance, bibliography, curatorial notes.  The Photographic Services department uses the media module to track their inventory and manage the circulation of photographic materials.  
 
As we develop new areas of data entry, i.e. fielding provenance as ex-collection related constituents, we bring representatives from various curatorial departments together with our standards administrator to come to consensus on the use of fields across collections.  This is not always an easy process.  But once folks realize the tremendous gain by standardizing across collections, there is enthusiasm and a willingness to change.  I do a lot of on going training and help departments figure out ways to tackle large retrospective data entry projects often with the help of part-time employees, volunteer grad students or interns.  
 
I'm happy to share our current documentation with anyone in charge of TMS at their institution to make their own.  These are all Word documents, and like I said before always evolving.  For example we upgraded to version 9.15 build 1523 last spring and still have to update our dimensions syntax rules to accommodate the very cool new ability to field multiple occurrences of dimensions for a single object.  
 
Amy Noel 
Collections Information System Application Manager 
The J. Paul Getty Museum 
 
 
>>> [log in to unmask] 07/16/02 06:29AM >>>
When we began the TMS installation, we formed a TMS project group made up
of the Registrar office staff, the curatorial staff and a few other staff
with major TMS involvement.
 
Before data entry began, this group met weekly for a long time to discuss
exactly what information would be put into a field and how the field would
be formatted.
 
We did this for the object module and most of the constituent module.
 
Whenever a drop-down menu can be used, the project group negotiated what
choices would be in the menu and when they would be used. This is
especially critical for the classification selections and the roles selections.
 
The project group also decided to follow the Getty ULAN naming convention
for all constituents.
 
Finally, we drew up general guidelines for formatting data in the fields
and trained the keypunchers to follow the guidelines.
 
Two important changes we made in TMS was to take away object and
constituent record deletion capability for all users except the System
Administrator. This eliminates the inevitable tragedy of a user deleting
important records that cannot be replaced.
 
A full-time staff technician/ system administrator is essential for TMS.
 
I hope this is helpful,  David Parsell,  Yale Art Gallery
 
 
 
  At 09:40 AM 7/16/2002 -0300, Anne Marr ( wrote:
>"urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" xmlns:w =
>"urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:word">
>I don't know what happened to the rest of my message, I must have hit send
>before I was finished.  I mean all of those Linda.  I have been attempting 
>to produce an institutional data-entry manual, and I'm sure there must be
>a lot of you out there with much more experience than I have, who could
>share their experiences.  For instance do you have your own classification 
>system or do you use Chenhall (sp?) or something else?  Really, any advice
>would be welcome, even to know what pitfalls to avoid would be a help.
>
>As far as the technical and administrative end of things are concerned, I
>admit I am out of my technological depth.  We have a casual IT person who
>looks after that at the moment but I feel that the museum really needs a
>dedicated IT position.
>
>Anne
>-----Original Message-----
>From: Linda Pulliam [mailto:[log in to unmask]] 
>Sent: 15 July 2002 5:16 PM
>To: [log in to unmask] 
>Subject: Re: Policies & Procedures
>
>Ann,
>
>Do you mean data entry standards, (capitalization, punctuation, etc.),
>field use standards, or process standards?
>
>Linda Pulliam
>Manager of Collections Information
>Museum of Fine Arts, Boston
>
>-----Original Message-----
>From: Anne Marr ( [mailto:[log in to unmask]] 
>Sent: Monday, July 15, 2002 4:15 PM
>To: [log in to unmask] 
>Subject: Re: Policies & Procedures
>
>I'd like to introduce myself as a new user to the group.  My name is Anne
>Marr and I am the Registrar at the New Brunswick Museum in Saint John, New
>Brunswick, Canada.  We have been using TMS for over a year now but we are
>still wrestling with problems with our data, not, I hasten to add, Gallery
>Systems' fault, but rather with the original data that was converted from
>CHIN (Canadian Heritage Information Network).  Just trying to get my head
>around the idea of relational versus flat-file databases is big deal to
>me!  I would, like Jack, be interested in the experiences of others so
>that I don't feel that I'm reinventing the wheel trying to develop
>standards and .
>
>Regards
>
>Anne Marr
>-----Original Message-----
>From: Jack Edwards [mailto:[log in to unmask]] 
>Sent: 28 June 2002 1:04 PM
>To: [log in to unmask] 
>Subject: Policies & Procedures
>
>Alberta Community Development is a new user to TMS.  We are looking for
>documentation, policies, procedures, best practices, etc related to the
>implementation of TMS.  Any information that is available would be
>appreciated.
>
>Regards
>Jack Edwards
>