Static tools, Dynamic sites – Booth 31

Demonstration
Eric Gardner, J. Paul Getty Museum, USA

Scholarly discussions unfold over decades – but when is the last time you have used a 20-year-old piece of software? How many of the files and formats currently in use will be accessible to scholars 20, 30, or 50 years in the future? One potential solution may sound paradoxical: in order to ensure future accessibility of our content, we should look back to the roots of the Web as it was originally envisioned: a linked collection of static, human-readable documents constructed according to a set of open standards.

At Getty Publications, we are developing a system to build future-proof digital publications which will continue to serve the scholarly community for years to come. Static site generators (as opposed to a traditional CMS like WordPress or Drupal) are an essential part of this process.

Come learn how Getty Publications is using a combination of static site generation tools (Jekyll, Middleman, etc.) and client-side interactivity to deliver a great experience to users without sacrificing stability or longevity. Join us as we demonstrate our newest digital publication, an interactive collection catalogue demonstrating some of the many dynamic features that can be achieved within a static site.