Tuesday, July 17, 2007

Public History from the Field

Like Bryan Andrachuk, Suzanne Fischer focuses much of her blog on digital history. But instead of the musings by a student of the profession, Public History: digital history on a budget offers a glimpse into the day-to-day life of a public historian. Despite his recent internship at History Television, Andrachuk doesn't have much real world experience, so much of his blog focuses on many theories in the practice of public history.

Fischer works for the HCMC Museum, a small medical history museum, and her blog centers around the various projects in which she's involved. As much as I like to learn about Public History in an abstract way, I'd prefer to find out what the typical day in a museum is like, and Fischer provides many examples. She posts about what appears to be a typical donation in the life of a medical museum and discusses the software that many in her profession utilize.

The layout of Public History is pretty much the same as that of the pastime of past time. Neither blog includes much in the way of extra' such a videos or pictures. Fischer does provide a great index of categories, which makes finding posts on specific subject matter very easy. I also really like the snap shots she provided for the hyperlinks. The link list contains many Public History websites and blogs that I was not aware of and did not find on pastime.

Fischer updates her blog several times a month, sometimes several times a week, and I commend her for her dedication. In addition to her museum work, Fischer is finishing her PhD and contributes to another blog where she posts on her dissertation.

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