Projects at the Western Australian Museum
The Western Australian Museum (WAM) is a government department in Western Australia. We have been working with the organisation since November 2004, primarily with the Natural Sciences section.
We have also done small amounts of work with the Anthropology section and the Museum Assistance Program. All of our work has been undertaken in close conjunction with the WAM's information technology support group in the Department of Culture and the Arts (DCA).
As the WAM undertakes a range of environmental research - and this is their primary focus - all of the work we have done with the organisation has been charged at a discounted rate - half of our full rate - in alignment with our policy of supporting environmental research in Western Australia.
We have undertaken a range of projects with the Western Australian Museum, including:
- Support and maintenance for the Collections databases
- Support and development of in-house Geographical Information Systems (GIS) activities
- Development of strategic briefing notes
- Running strategic meetings and delivering update emails
- Developing procedures for various tasks
Support and maintenance for the Collections databases
We have been providing a range of support and maintenance services to the WAM for their Collections databases, including the Arachnid, Bird, Crustacean, Fish, Insects, Mammals, Marine Invertebrate, Mollusc, Reptile and Worm databases. All of these databases consist of very complex Microsoft Access front ends with the data stored in Microsoft SQL Server.
Our on-site support services have included:
- Troubleshooting bugs in the existing Microsoft Access front ends
- Upgrading and maintenance of the various tools in Microsoft Access
- Training of staff in the use of the various tools in the databases
- Modification of the underlying Microsoft SQL Server databases
- Migration of the Microsoft SQL Server databases to a new specific database server
The complex nature of the databases mean that there are often hidden dependencies in the databases - changing one tool can lead to a cascading effect in the remaining tools. We have to systematically test any changes we make, and when we have caused other tools to cease working, we have rectified the situation at no cost to the WAM (in line with our policy of free bug-fixes).
Support and development of in-house GIS activities
The WAM is custodian of a large amount of spatially-enabled data in their collections databases. We have assisted the various staff within the WAM in using their Geographical Information Systems software (ESRI's ArcView 3.X) to make enquiries on this data, or to develop map products for various purposes such as for inclusion in scientific papers.
Our services in the GIS area have included:
- Developing map products for various purposes
- Creating stand-alone projects that allow for the staff to undertake simple mapping tasks and to view data held in the Microsoft SQL Server databases through a geographical interface.
- Training of staff in the use of GIS
- Extracting data for WAM customers using geographical boundaries
- Providing advice on the updating of GIS products
Development of strategic briefing notes
We have developed a range of strategic briefing notes that have included summary documents for executives, option evaluation for replacement of specific tools, and strategic plans for the future of the data management systems within the WAM.
Running strategic meetings and delivering update emails
In the earlier days of the projects, we initiated quarterly strategic database meetings for the Natural Sciences section of the WAM. These meetings were deemed by WAM staff to be of great value as a communication mechanism, and staff from other departments, and the DCA, were invited to add their perspective.
Emails were also sent out at regular intervals - both to communicate the results of these meetings, but also to tell staff of changes made to the various databases.
Developing procedures for various tasks
We have also developed a range of step-by-step, illustrated procedures for the staff at the WAM (and the support staff from the DCA) on topics such as:
- Adding new users to the databases
- Using GIS to map the geographical spread of tissue samples
- Using GIS to create simple map products
- Converting co-ordinates from one geographical format to another
These procedures are currently in use by staff in their ongoing work.
During the course of our work with the WAM, we have provided them with a client area on this web site. The client area contains copies of all of their main documents.