TabbedOverviewCommunist Party of Great Britain (CPGB) is a thematic series contained as a sub-set within the digitized archival content known as British Online Archives (BOA), distributed by Microform Academic Publishers (MAP). Provider: Microform Academic PublishersPosted: Jul 22, 2013 6:39pmUpdated: Jun 20, 2017 10:41amSourceCRL reviews are based on independent research. Information is researched by CRL staff and other specialists at CRL libraries. See CRL Review for additional source notes.See also: British Online Archives DetailsCollection ContentSubject Areas: Arts and HumanitiesSocial SciencesResource Types: Archival materialsMajor Languages: English - Denotes data sourced directly from publisherContent Details: Topics coveredhistory; culture; politics; economics; labor Geographic coverageBritain Chronological coverage1943-1991 Source format(s)manuscript and printed materials Total titlesNA (18 collections of archival documents) Total pages256,000 (as of August 2013) Digital collection launch date2008 Completion dateNA Collection ongoing Y Update frequencyquarterly Available supplements Included automatically during initial access period SpecificationsMetadata: MARC records available NA Creator of MARC recordsNA Source for obtaining MARC recordsNA Fee for MARC recordsNA Subject authorities usedNA Name authorities usedNA Technical Platform: Browser compatibilityMost browsers (problems observed with old versions of Adobe Reader) Authentication optionsIP address ranges; individual username/password Archiving solution (master files)NA Archiving solution (derivative files) NA Available in web discovery tools N Open url target Y Federated searching, z39.50 N Local host option Y Usage stats based on Counter codeY Interface Tools: Full text displayed Y (for transcriptions) Page images Y Color images Y (limited to a small number of collections) Search full text Y (limited to non-handwritten documents) Advanced search Y Search within results N Limit results by dates and/or document types Y Display highlighted search terms N Display snippet (search term in context)N Relevance sorting N Save searches Y (when using end-user login) Download PDF Y (but only individual pages) Download HTML N Print page Y Print full document N Export citations N Annotation tools N Cross-product searching Y ILL permittedY (to be negotiated with requesting institution) Text/data mining permittedNA Restrictions on usesee license for details Terms and Provider DetailsTerms: Provider notes Subscription option Y Purchase option Y Multiple year payments option Y Maintenance feesY Hosting charges Y Provider: Microform Academic Publishers Main Address: Main Street, East Ardsley, Wakefield West Yorkshire WF3 2AP United Kingdom CRL ReviewCollection Content: Communist Party of Great Britain (CPGB) is a thematic series contained as a sub-set within the digitized archival content known as British Online Archives (BOA), distributed by Microform Academic Publishers (MAP). CPGB currently is made up of eighteen different archival collections groups. These papers, covering the period 1943-1991, were not available for research consultation prior to the early 1990s. The publishers indicate: “With the dissolution of the Communist Party of Great Britain. . . the decision was taken to deposit the archives alongside those of the Labour Party in Manchester's People's History Museum. [Now held at the Labour History Archive and Study Centre (LHASC) in Manchester.] Catalogued in 1993-1994, these turned out to be one of the outstanding national collections for the political history of the British left . . . from the 1940s, records of the party's central leading bodies have been meticulously preserved and include notes taken at meetings by leading party officials.” In addition to recording general meetings, the papers cover trade union activities and relations with communist parties overseas. Papers covering the period prior to 1943 had been transferred to Moscow. The total collections in CPGB as of August 2013 are: Ben Bradley Papers Campaigns and Events Dona Torr Papers EC Commissions and Suchlike Bodies ETU Ballot-rigging Trial Proceedings Executive Committee Harry Pollitt Papers Industrial Department International Department, International Affairs Committee and External Relations Ivor Montagu Papers J.T. & Molly Murphy Papers John Gollan Papers Miscellaneous EC Sub-committees & Non-industrial Advisory Committees, etc. Miscellaneous Individuals National Congresses and Similar Conferences National Cultural Committee Political Committee William Wainwright Papers Women's Department In all, the eighteen collections currently total around 256,000 pages. Among the largest collection groups are: Ivor Montagu Papers, International Department, and Political Committee. The Archive Trust of the Communist Party authorized making the content available online and in microfilm. Delivery: Technical platform & interface Each of the collections included within CPGB can be individually searched on the BOA platform. See the CRL review of BOA for a critique of the platform features. Additionally, there is a separate landing page for CPGB within the BOA platform. While that would seem to be desirable, since the eighteen CPGB collections form such a large subset of the thirty-eight collections currently in BOA, there are several functional drawbacks to the design of this particular landing page: Only a basic keyword search is available. The advanced search option defaults to the BOA advanced search, so one cannot perform advanced search operations on the full group or selected collections specifically constituting the BRAW subject series. The listing of collections included in CPGB is displayed in a dynamically scrolling insert; it is difficult to grasp at once the full list of collections, and there is no apparent order to the listing. There is no prompt to return to the full group of BOA collections; the “home” button reverts back to the CPGB landing page. Metadata The metadata is based on cataloging by the LHASC. Records are intended to display for each “series”, document, and page image. However, the metadata display window did not work intuitively in a Firefox browser. Terms: There are several payment options: as an annual subscription, five-year license, or perpetual license. Strengths and Weaknesses: The strengths and weaknesses pertaining to the British Online Archives (BOA) database as a whole are relevant here: While the scope of some of the individual collections may be somewhat narrow, MAP’s effort to convert an extensive microform series is impressive. The use of a conventional hierarchical archival collection structure for the browse lists, and inclusion of contextual collection descriptions plus well-formed metadata extending down to page level are welcome features which should serve scholars and students alike. Regarding basic functional deficiencies in the platform, MAP has indicated a willingness to consider implementing features including: ability to download and print a maximum of a full document at a time rather than one page at a time; ability to apply search functions to multiple selected collections. Also as noted, there are also a number of deficiencies inherent in the CPGB series search page (as distinct from the main BOA search interface), which make it an unsatisfactory way to search these collections. Reviewers: Center for Research Libraries Virginia Kerr - Digital Program Manager SourcesSources for this review include information publicly posted or obtained directly from the publisher; data collected by CRL staff and specialists at CRL libraries; and examination of the digital collection when possible. Other sources are noted where cited. CRL continues to gather additional information on this resource and to solicit critical assessment. CRL Offers & Status StatusCurrentDescription CRL FlaggednoPotential interest to CRL community Offer PendingnoCurrently a candidate for CRL offer Active OffernoCurrently offered for purchase or new subscription Trial AccessnoAvailable for trial Renewal OffernoCurrently offered for renewal Expired OffernoPast offers Inactive / DeclinednoNo longer under consideration by CRL Reviewed by CRLyesEvaluation available by CRL and community Special AccessnoMember-only access available for a limited time The complete offer and activity details for this resource are only available to CRL members. Community RatingsPlatform and user interface: 0 Your rating: None 0 No votes yet Content scope and completeness: 0 Your rating: None 0 No votes yet Cost and price-structure: 0 Your rating: None 0 No votes yet Print