IT project maps conversations between history's big thinkers

Electronic Enlightenment Project uses FileMaker to map a "virtual web of communication"

The Electronic Enlightenment Project at the University of Oxford’s Bodleian Libraries is using database management software to create a “virtual web of communication”, allowing users to map written correspondence between notable historic authors and recipients.

The Electronic Enlightenment Project creates a network of over 58,000 connected documents, primarily letters, written by prominent authors such as Descartes, Voltaire, Thomas Hobbes, John Locke and Immanuel Kant. The project offers users access to each document and explains its place in history.

Dr Robert McNamee, director of the Electronic Enlightenment Project, explained that he opted to use FileMaker’s database management solution while digitising the complete works of Voltaire at another department at Oxford.

“The director of the department showed me FileMaker which, back then, was at Version 3.2. We needed something that was able to handle a really granular bibliographic system, lots of documents in different formats, and FileMaker proved suitable for this,” he said.

When embarking on the Electronic Enlightenment Project, he opted to use FileMaker Pro 11, and said that its relational database capabilities allow him to bring hundreds of thousands of records together and allow for deep scrutiny.

He also cited easy integration with other database outputs, easy export functions, real-time building and testing, and a user-friendly interface as key factors in opting for the FileMaker solution.

“When it came to this project, I wanted a database system that worked like Google’s search engine – the kind of idea where it’s simple to use, but gives you the world. We wanted the same kind of concept for this database,” said McNamee.

“Our goal was to meet quality standards, but be user friendly. FileMaker allowed us to rebuild the world of the 18th century through literature and still allow students, non-technical academics, publishing colleagues and librarians to be able to both use the system and help develop and build database components.”

Although it is a not-for-profit project, the project’s funder – the Mellon Foundation – insisted that it was built with a business plan which would ultimately make the project self-sustainable.

“The Filemaker software is a very reasonable investment for us,” said McNamee. “It isn’t just the cost of buying the software, but the ease of not having to hire a very technical high-priced individual to develop and support our systems.”