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Tutorials + Resources

Omeka Classic logo with Fibonacci sequence

Omeka - Add Items

Jess Waggoner | Spring 2017

Omeka is a collection management tool for online exhibits. This content management system is specifically designed to input information about objects consistent with professional museum and library metadata schemes (back-end information structures). This tool is particularly useful for digital exhibit projects where you want to create an online exhibit that mirrors the collection style display of a physical exhibit. Anyone can create a limited account at Omeka.net. For classes, please contact us at digitalcommons@ucsc.edu to inquire about setting up an Omeka S Class instance prior to the quarter of your desired class.

Contents

Video: Manage Your Items

Create a Collection

Collections are "buckets" that will store your items together in one place and allow you to find them quickly.

Add collection button

  1. Click on "Collections" in the left hand menu.
  2. Click "Add a Collection"
  3. Give your collection a Title
  4. Optional: add additional metadata about your collection as needed

Add an Item from your computer

Items tab in menu

Step 1: Go to the Items screen

  1. Log into your Omeka site to go to your Dashboard
  2. Select "Items" from the left-hand menu
  3. Click the green "Add an Item" button above the list of items

Add Item screen under Dublin Core tab

Step 2: Add Item metadata

  1. Look at the navigation bar under the page title "Add an Item" to make sure you are in the "Dublin Core" section
  2. Fill in the necessary fields such as Title, Creator, Source, etc.
  3. Optional: Click the "Use HTML" box below a field to get a WYSIWYG editor box for adding hyperlinks or other HTML code

Add Files

Step 3: Upload your file

  1. Click on "Files" in the top navigation bar
  2. Click the "Browse" button to select and add a file from your computer.
  3. Optional: Click "Add another file" if your item is composed of more than one file (example: the front and back of a postcard, a video file with a text transcript)
  4. Click the "Public" box below the "Add Item" button on the right to make your item visible
  5. Select a collection from the drop-down menu on the right
  6. Click the green "Add Item" button

Add Videos from YouTube

YouTube logo

You can import videos directly from YouTube using "YouTube Import" in the left navigation bar.

Enter the URL for the YouTube video and assign it to your collection using the drop-down menu.

Metadata (Title, etc.) for the video will be pulled from YouTube but you should review and clean up the metadata after import. To do this, find the newly imported YouTube video by going to the "Items" screen using the left navigation bar.

Add Images from Flickr

You can import images directly from Flickr using "Flickr Import" in the left navigation bar.

Enter the URL for a single image and assign it to your collection using the drop-down menu.

Metadata (Title, etc.) for the image will be pulled from Flickr but you should review and clean up the metadata after import. To do this, find the newly imported Flickr image by going to the "Items" screen using the left navigation bar.

 

All creative commons button

Creative Commons:

By default, a Flickr search will retrieve items of "Any license." We recommend limiting your Flickr search to "All creative commons" to find only items that have a Creative Commons (CC) license.

You can also use the Creative Commons Search to find CC licensed images in Flickr and other sources.