PATHS poster used by Paul Clough et al, at the launch of the University of Sheffield iSchool in June 2011.

1. Personalised access to cultural heritage spaces
Mark M. Hall, Paula Goodale, Samuel Fernando, Paul Clough, Mark Stevenson, Nigel Ford
The Paths project aims to provide improved access to digital Cultural Heritage collections through the use of personalised pathways
through the Cultural Heritage information space. These pathways can be provided by experts, other users, or suggested by the
Paths system based on the user's personal interests, knowledge, and preferred cognitive style.
Concept
The Paths project will take a user-led, iterative approach to Collect
both the research and systems development.
In the initial phase a number of studies will be used to determine how people think
Surveys about pathways and how they make use of existing digital Cultural Heritage systems.
Iterative
System
Experiments Surveys
Development
Literature Experiments Log analysis Qualitative
What do people look at? How do you create a path?
How do people navigate between items? How are paths used?
User-based
Evaluation criteria evaluation Live system analysis Quantitative
What is the user currently interested in? How often do people use existing digital
What is the user's current personal style? Cultural Heritage resources?
How easy to use are existing digital
Create Cultural Heritage resources?
Building
is_a
Consume
L.S. Lowry Mine Factory
When a user consumes a path the system will adapt
Communicate
created_by has_subject
the interface to the user's cognitive style (how they
like to approach new areas) and personal interests.
Sketch Photograph Painting Follow our progress at
The Paths project will utilise novel user-interfaces and a powerful http://www.paths-project.eu
graph-based representation of the digital Cultural Heritage data to "I want to be Dependent
led through a very
enable the user to collect items, create a path from the items, specific area that I Or via
communicate the path to others and consume others' paths. am interested in"
@PATHS_project
Local Global
Iron Works 19th century PATHS-Personalised Access to CH spaces
"I prefer getting
Industrial Revolution terraced houses
a good overview
PATHS-Personalised Access to CH spaces
on my own"
Railway Poster Independent
Disused mine
Cognitive-style dimensions
after Pask & Witkin
Basic Ideas about The Rocket
Funded by FP7-ICT-2009-6 Grant No. 270082
the Industrial Railways
Revolution This will also form one of the foundations for
evaluating the performance of the Paths system
Path about the Industrial Revolution Theme Item Learning Outcome