Postmortem 'Prozhito'

Value of the Information & Strength of the Argument

The talk provides valuable insights into the practical challenges of running a digital humanities project, particularly the tension between initial design and evolving needs. The argumentation is solid, based on the speaker’s direct experience and specific examples. The speaker is transparent about the project’s difficulties and the iterative process of redefining its goals. The value lies in the detailed account of how technical decisions shape the project’s direction and the importance of flexibility in digital archive design.

Scientific Rigor, Source Quality, Title Accuracy

The talk is rigorous in its internal consistency and draws on the speaker’s expertise. However, it does not cite external sources, relying instead on the project’s own experience. The title ‘Postmortem’ is somewhat misleading as the project is ongoing, but the speaker acknowledges this and uses the term metaphorically to discuss transformation. The talk is well-structured and provides a clear narrative of the project’s evolution.

The title 'Postmortem Prozhito' is apt, as the talk critically examines the project's transformations and challenges, though it clarifies that the project is alive and evolving.

8/10

The talk is an expert retrospective by the technical director of the Prozhito project, providing detailed internal insights into the project's evolution. It is a first-hand account, not peer-reviewed, but highly credible due to the speaker's role and the institutional context.

Markers derived by PSI from the transcript: the creator did not define chapters.

• 02:00Introduction and disclaimers about the talk's title and scope.
• 10:00Overview of the project's origins in 2014 and initial design as a collection of diaries.
• 20:00Discussion of the volunteer community and the process of digitizing and transcribing diaries.
• 30:00Challenges with the initial data model when expanding to other ego-documents.
• 40:00Institutionalization in 2019 and the need to broaden scope to all ego-documents.
• 50:00Problems with representing the materiality and context of diaries.
• 1:00:00The decision to build a digital archive and exploration of different hypotheses.
• 1:10:00Discussion of the meta-archive and social platform concepts.
• 1:20:00Conclusion and opening for discussion.

• Telegram channel 'Humanities in Digital' — Channel for updates from the Digital Humanities Research Institute (DHRI) at SFU.
• Telegram channel 'Archive Geek' — Channel by Nikita Lomakin, the discussant, on archival topics.

• Prozhito project website — The project's official site, demonstrating its ongoing work.