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  • Universal Viewer

    British Online Archives uses the Universal Viewer (UV) to display images and other media (PDFs, JPEGs, video, audio, etc.). The Universal Viewer is open-source software used by many renowned heritage institutions such as the British Library, the National Library of Wales, the Swedish National Archives, and the Wellcome Library.

    Note: Not every collection currently uses the UV. Some older BOA collections use a PDF viewer to display images. While not as advanced as the Universal Viewer, the PDF viewer includes a range of useful technical features such as deep zoom. We are in the process of transferring all collections onto the Universal Viewer. 

    The UV incorporates a range of unique and useful technical features, including deep zoom, OCR searching, IIIF image API, and extensible metadata fields. 

  • Viewing Documents

    You can view documents in three ways:

    • As a single page
    • As a double-page spread
    • As a gallery

  • Viewing Images

    You can navigate through images in the following ways:

    • By selecting the image thumbnails displayed on the contents bar.
    • By selecting an arrow to navigate forwards and backwards through the images.
      • Note: There are two sets of arrows displayed on the UV, both serving the same purpose.
    • By entering your desired image number directly into the box displaying your current image number.
    • If you’re using a laptop/PC, you can also use the page up/page down keys on your keyboard.

     

    There is also an option to view images in full-screen mode. 

    Images can be rotated through 90 degrees clockwise by selecting the rotate icon. 

  • Deep Zoom Feature

    The deep zoom feature allows you to inspect key details in a document without lowering the quality of the image. Select the plus sign (+) to zoom in and the minus sign (-) to zoom out.

    If you are using a laptop/PC you can also zoom in by scrolling up and zoom out by scrolling down. If “Mouse Click to Zoom” is toggled on in settings, you can zoom in by left-clicking and zoom out by shift + left-clicking. 

  • OCR Search

    Each image on the website has undergone Optical Character Recognition (OCR). This means that you can search for words or phrases contained within images. To search for every mention of "Royal Air Force", for instance, you should enter the phrase into the search bar. The results will be displayed on the contents bar. The relevant word or phrase will be highlighted in blue on the images. 

    Note: OCR text data is computer-generated for our documents through an automated process. While we aim for the highest quality OCR possible, due to the age and quality of the documents and the accuracy of the algorithms used, text transcriptions are not always as accurate as we would like.

  • Image Metadata

    Select Metadata to view important information about the document (Description, Contributor, Creator, Publisher, Rights, Coverage, Identifier, Licence, etc.). To minimise the tab, select Metadata.

  • Downloading Images

    To download an image, select the download button and the appropriate image size. The image will then open in a new tab. 

    If you are accessing our collections via an institutional account, there is also a function outside of the UV to download whole documents, instead of individual images.

  • Trials

    British Online Archives (BOA) offers all academic institutions and many non-academic institutions (i.e. national libraries) trials of BOA collections, starting at a minimum of 30 calendar days. All trial requests must be submitted to BOA by the university or public librarian on behalf of the institution. Access is granted via IP address, proxy IP, or federated access using Shibboleth or Open Athens.

  • Pricing

    All pricing can be provided upon request. Prices are generally based on a one-time/perpetual access model. Annual subscriptions can also be negotiated.

  • Bundles

    We offer institutions the opportunity to bundle collections together. These bundles are sold at a discounted price.

  • Jisc DAC Scheme (UK Only)

    BOA is a member of the Jisc Digital Archival Collections Group Purchasing Scheme. This provides all member institutions with significant discounts on 20 of our most popular collections. The collections have the potential to be further discounted throughout the academic year depending on the number of purchases we receive through the scheme.

  • Non-UK Representatives

    In addition to our UK-based sales and account management staff, BOA is also represented by territory-specific sales agency staff in North America, Australasia, China, and Japan. Further information on our global agents can be found here.

  • Accessibility Statement From British Online Archives

    This website is run by Microform LTD. Our aim is to make it as accessible and user-friendly as possible. This means you should be able to:

    • change colours, contrast levels, and fonts.
    • zoom-in up to 300% without text spilling off the screen.
    • navigate most of the website using a keyboard.
    • navigate most of the website using speech recognition software.
    • listen to most of the website’s content using a screen reader (including the most recent versions of JAWS, NVDA, and VoiceOver).


    We have also endeavoured to make the website text as simple as possible to understand.

    AbilityNet has advice on making your device easier to use if you have a disability.

    Please contact us at support@britishonlinearchives.digital if you have any feedback on the accessibility of our website.

  • What To Do If You Cannot Access Parts Of This Website

    Please email support@britishonlinearchives.digital if you require our content to be presented in a different format, such as accessible PDF, large print, easy read, audio recording, or braille.

    We will consider your request and aim to get back to you within 1–2 working days.

  • Reporting Accessibility Problems With This Website

    We are always looking to improve the accessibility of this website. If you have any suggestions or are concerned that this website is not meeting accessibility requirements please contact us.

    By email: info@britishonlinearchives.co.uk or support@britishonlinearchives.digital 

    By phone: +44 (0)1924 825700

    In person: British Online Archives, Main Street, East Ardsley, Wakefield, West Yorkshire, WF3 2AP, United Kingdom

    Our main office is open Monday to Thursday 9.00am–5.00pm, and Friday 9.00am–3.30pm. We ask that you contact us before visiting to ensure that someone is on hand to deal with your enquiry.

  • Enforcement Procedure

    The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) is responsible for enforcing the Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018 (the “accessibility regulations”). If you are not happy with how we respond to your complaint, contact the Equality Advisory and Support Service (EASS).

  • Technical Information About This Website’s Accessibility

    British Online Archives is committed to making our website accessible in accordance with the Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018.

    This website is partially compliant with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines version 2.1 AA standard, due to the non-compliances listed below.

    Inaccessible content

    The content listed below is non-accessible for the following reasons.

    Noncompliance with the accessibility regulations:

    • some images do not have a text alternative, which fails WCAG 2.1 criterion 1.1.1 (Non-text Content).
    • podcasts do not currently have a descriptive text transcript, which fails WCAG 2.1 criterion 1.2.1 (Prerecorded Audio-only and Video-only).
    • sometimes instructions rely on shape, size, or visual location, such as our Support questions and answers, which fails WCAG 2.1 criterion 1.3.3 (Sensory Characteristics).
    • contrast of links is sometimes insufficient, which fails WCAG 2.1 criterion 1.4.3 (Contrast (Minimum)).
    • there is currently only one way to find other web pages on BOA, which fails WCAG 2.1 criterion 2.4.5 (Multiple Ways).


    Work is ongoing to meet WCAG 2.1 success criteria for Level A and AA. We aim to meet this criteria by December 2024.

    Disproportionate burden

    • Interactive tools and transactions: 
      • British Online Archives uses the Universal Viewer (UV) to display images and other media (PDFs, JPEGs, video, audio, etc.). This may introduce accessibility difficulties with media which are out of our control, such as text flow issues when using screen readers. More information on the UV can be found on their website.
      • Note: Not every collection currently uses the UV. We are working on implementing it within all of our collections. Other collections utilise a library to display our documents, called PDF.js. This may introduce accessibility difficulties with PDFs which are out of our control, such as text flow issues when using screen readers.
    • Content that is not within the scope of the accessibility regulations:
      • None applicable.


  • BOA's Website Structure

    The BOA website is divided into the following categories:

    • Themes
    • Collections
    • Volumes
    • Documents
    • Images

     

    Beginning with themes, the categories cover increasingly specific subject areas or time periods as you move from themes, to collections, to volumes, to documents, and finally, to images. 

  • Themes

    A theme contains multiple collections that relate to a broad, overarching subject. The collections in a theme will therefore be complementary, given their affiliation and relevance to the same general subject area. Collections are organised in this way to make them easier to find and understand.

    For example, the theme International Relations contains the collections Establishing the Post-War International Order, 1944­­–1961 and Paris Peace Conference and Beyond, 1919–1939. Themes are similar to areas within a library, where multiple bookshelves will focus on a broad, overarching topic.  

    Themes are made up of collections.

  • Collections

    A collection contains material organised into volumes and documents relating to a narrower, more specific subject area or time period than the overall theme (i.e., Establishing the Post-War International Order, 1944–1961). 

    Each collection is designed in the same format. It has its own highlights, insights, downloads, and key data. Highlights are key documents from the collection, specially selected by the editorial team due to their significance. Insights provide historical context. The downloads tab includes collection marketing materials, such as a collection summary, a flyer, and sample images. Some collections also include a downloadable list of archival references. Finally, key data includes the description of the collection and information regarding the contributor/s, creator, publisher, rights, date range, identifier, licence, and so on.

    Collections are made up of volumes.

  • Volumes

    Within a collection, materials are split into volumes to make the content easier to navigate. A volume contains documents grouped thematically, chronologically, or by archival reference. For example, British Government Information and Propaganda, 1939–2009 is organised thematically and has volumes such as Immigration and Race, 1940–2006 and Political Economy and Trade, 1938–1996. The Sphere, 1900–1964 is organised chronologically, with volumes such as The Sphere, 1900 and The Sphere, 1901 etc. Alternatively, volumes can be based on archival references, such as Records of the Board of Trade, 1945–1961 and Records of the Cabinet Office, 1943–1961. These are volumes within the collection Establishing the Post-War International Order, 1944–1961.

    Volumes are made up of documents.

  • Documents

    A document is composed of scans of primary sources. A document can be thought of as a folder made up of multiple images (i.e., CAB 79/48/10 is a document in the Records of the Cabinet Office, 1943–1961 volume, which belongs to the Establishing the Post-War International Order, 1944–1961 collection). 

    Documents are made up of images.

  • Searching British Online Archives

    There are five ways to search for archival material on the British Online Archives (BOA) website:

    • Website search
    • Collection search
    • Volume search
    • Image viewer (UV) search
    • Advanced search

  • Website Search

    Performing a website search means your query will be submitted across all collections, volumes, and documents. This is performed by either selecting the search icon on the main menu or the search bar on the home page and entering your search term.

    The subsequent results are displayed in order of relevance but can be changed to show the newest or oldest items first by selecting the "Sort by" drop-down menu.

    A list of filters can be applied to refine a search. These filters are:

    • Subscription. Selecting "Subscribed Content Only" will display results from collections for which you have access to via an individual or institutional license. To use this filter, you must be logged into the website.
    • Resource level. Choose between viewing collections and/or documents in the search results.
    • Subject. The available subjects are British Communism; Colonialism and Empire; Culture and Society; Economics; International Relations; Media and Communications; Medicine; Philosophy and Religion; Politics and Social Movements; Science and Technology; and War and Security. 
    • Time period. You can use this filter to search chronologically. The available time periods are: Eighteenth Century; Nineteenth Century; Twentieth Century; Early Modern; Middle Ages; and Modern History. 
    • Region. You can use this filter to search by geography. The available regions are Africa; Asia; Europe; the Middle East; Northern Europe; Oceania; the Americas; and Western Europe.
    • Collections. You can use this filter to narrow down results to specific collections. All of our collections are included in this filter.

     

    If you wish to perform a new search with no filters, you should first unselect any filters applied in your previous search or select “Clear all”.

  • Collection-Level Search

    The collection-level search function is similar to the website search, displaying matches in the form of documents. The main difference is that each collection has a different range of filters depending on its contents. You can access this search by selecting the search icon on a collection landing page or entering your search term into “Search Collection…”.

    The documents in British Government Information and Propaganda, 1939-2009, for instance, can be filtered by institution (e.g. Colonial Office, Ministry of Defence, etc.), sub-theme (e.g. Education, Police, etc.), and material type (e.g. Pamphlet, Poster, etc.). 

  • Volume-Level Search

    The volume-level search function is the same as the collection-level search function. The only difference is that it will only show results from one volume, rather than across the entire collection. You can access this search by selecting a volume and entering your search term in “Search documents…”.

    The filters in the volume-level search are the same as the filters in the collection-level search.

  • Image Viewer (UV) Search

    The Universal Viewer (UV) incorporates a range of unique and useful technical features, including optical character recognition searching (OCR).

    Each image on the website has undergone Optical Character Recognition (OCR). This means that you can search for words or phrases contained within images. To search for every mention of “Royal Air Force”, for instance, you should enter the phrase into the search bar. The results will be displayed on the contents bar. The relevant word or phrase will be highlighted in blue on the images themselves. 

    Note: OCR text data is computer-generated for our documents through an automated process. While we aim for the highest quality OCR possible, due to the age and quality of the documents and the accuracy of the algorithms used, text transcriptions are not always as accurate as we would like.

  • Advanced Search

    Advanced search applies to all of our search levels across the website.

    Default search:

    If you enter two or more words into the search box, without any other symbols, it will automatically perform an "OR" search. This means it will search for both the term and for each word individually.

    Example:

    If you enter American Revolution into the search box, it will search for

    • American Revolution; or
    • American; or
    • Revolution.


    Exact phrase search:

    To search for an exact phrase, use quotation marks.

    Example:

    If you enter “American Revolution” into the search box, it will search for

    • American Revolution


    Search by title:

    This search enables you to just search collection, volume, and document titles.

    Example:

    If you enter title:(colonial law) this will search for colonial law, but only within collection, volume, and document titles.

    Search by description:

    This search enables you to just search collection, volume, and document descriptions.

    Example:

    If you enter description:(colonial law) this will search for colonial law, but only within the collection, volume, and document descriptions. 

    Start year search:

    This search enables you to search for every collection, volume, and document that begins in a particular year.

    Example:

    If you enter coverage_start:(1939) this will search for all collections, volumes, and documents that begin in 1939.

    Boolean searches:

    Boolean operators tell search that some words are not optional and others should not be included in the results. Words with a "+" before them will definitely be included in the results. Words with a "-" before them will not be included in the results.

    Example: 

    If you enter +revolution -French -industrial the results will contain the word revolution and will not contain the words French or industrial.

    Proximity search:

    This search enables you to search for two words with one word in between. These terms can be in either order. 

    Example: 

    Entering “shipping lists”~1 will search for phrases such as “lists for shipping”.

    Entering “First War”~1 will search for phrases such as “First World War”.

    Boosting:

    This search enables you to focus your search on a particular word or phrase. The “^1” tells the search which word or phrase to prioritise.

    Example:  

    If you enter “Cold War”^1 nuclear war you are telling the search function that the phrase “Cold War” is more important than the words nuclear and war.

    Grouping search terms:

    As in mathematics, brackets tell the search function where to start with your query.

    Example:

    If you enter (revolution OR 1812) +America this will search for revolution America and 1812 America.

    Reserved characters:

    Reserved characters are letters and symbols on the keyboard which tell our search tool to complete technical commands.

    These characters are: +  -   =   &&  ||  > <   !  (  )   {  }  [   ]  ^  "   ~  *  ?   :   \   /

    If you need to use these characters within your search, you can prefix it with \ to tell the search to treat it as a normal character.

    Examples:

    \&&

    \=

    \||

  • Usage Statistics

    All institutions can acquire COUNTER version 5 compliant statistics. These statistics can also be accessed during a trial. The statistics can be provided upon request or can be downloaded directly from our access management portal.

  • Contact

    Please send all sales enquiries to info@britishonlinearchives.co.uk. 

  • Images

    An image is a single page within a document and is a scan of a primary source. (i.e., Image 1 is the first page of the document CAB 79/48/10). Images are like single pages in books.

  • Settings

    Select settings on the viewer to change things such as default language, viewing options, and zoom settings.

  • Mobile/Smaller Screens

    If you are viewing the BOA website on a mobile or a smaller screen, the UV will have slightly different features, i.e. there is no search, there is no side gallery showing image thumbnails, and metadata can be accessed by selecting the “i” button.

    More information on the UV can be found on the Universal Viewer webpage.

  • How We Test This Website

    We test this website using the following evaluation methods:


    This website was tested internally on 28/02/2023.

    Our Voluntary Product Accessibility Template (VPAT) document provides further details on accessibility.

  • Citations Guidance

    This page offers guidance on referencing the sources in our collections. If you are referencing material hosted by BOA, please consult the style guide or referencing system adopted by your institution or the publication that you are submitting to. What follows is merely a general guide.

  • How We Reference Our Material:

    A standard reference adheres to the following format:

    British Online Archives, Collection title, “Document title or item description”, available at link, image number.

    For example:

    British Online Archives, London Life, 1965–1966, “Close-up: Jimmy Woolf by Cynthia Judah”, available at https://microform.digital/boa/documents/23239/20th-november-1965#?xywh=-2288%2C0%2C7374%2C3642&cv=33, image 34. 

    Given the wide range of archival material hosted by BOA, we recommend using either the document title or a description of the item that you are referencing. Documents on our site are composed of scans of archival sources, therefore a BOA “document” can be thought of as a folder made up of multiple images and items. Sometimes it is more intuitive to use an item description. In other instances, it is better to use the document title. Use your discretion to decide which to include in your reference. The following examples should help you decide which to opt for.

  • Using An Item Description:

    If you are referencing material that is part of a clear section within a document and which has an obvious heading or title—such as newspaper articles, official reports, periodicals or, say, minutes of a meeting—use an item description in the reference. 

    For example:

    British Online Archives, The Sketch, 1893–1958, “In the Great World”, available at https://microform.digital/boa/documents/29763/11th-december-1912#?xywh=-876%2C-507%2C5886%2C2908&cv=13, image 14.

    British Online Archives, American Women's Club Magazine, 1925–1936, “Waist-lines and Skirt-lines”, available at https://microform.digital/boa/documents/43185/october-1928#?xywh=-625%2C-1302%2C12891%2C6368&cv=17, image 19.

    British Online Archives, British Labour Party Papers, 1968–1994, “Minutes of a Party Meeting held on Wednesday, 24th November 1976 at 12 noon in Committee Room 14”, available at https://microform.digital/boa/documents/62/minutes-for-197677-session, image 2. 

    British Online Archives, BBC Listener Research Department Reports, 1937–c.1950, “What time do people have their meals?”, available at https://microform.digital/boa/documents/685/reports-for-1938, image 83. 

  • Using the Document Title:

    Other documents are not clearly split into sections. In such cases, it is better to use the document title that has been assigned by BOA.

    For example: 

    British Online Archives, South Africa in Records from Colonial Missionaries, 1819–1900, “Grahamstown, E. 30”, available at https://microform.digital/boa/documents/4894/grahamstown-e-30, image 11.

    British Online Archives, Communism in Crisis in Britain and Abroad, 1931–1979, “The Communist Party of the Netherlands in the Sino-Soviet Split, 1967”, available at https://microform.digital/boa/documents/26825/the-communist-party-of-the-netherlands-in-the-sino-soviet-split-1967#?xywh=321%2C349%2C1175%2C580&cv=3, image 4.

    British Online Archives, British Government Information and Propaganda, 1939–2009, “DEMP-1-29-83: Have You a Job To Offer? Young People Deserve a Chance, 1982”, available at https://microform.digital/boa/documents/22274/demp-1-29-83-have-you-a-job-to-offer-young-people-deserve-a-chance-1982#?xywh=-6372%2C-392%2C17743%2C7831, image 1.  

    British Online Archives, Antigua, Slavery and Emancipation in the Records of a Sugar Plantation, 1689–1907, “Parham Register of Slaves Including Birth and Deaths, 1817–1826”, available at https://microform.digital/boa/documents/5356/parham-register-of-slaves-including-birth-and-deaths-1817-1826, image 74.

Video Walkthroughs & Guides

A handy collection of video and PDF guides to help you get the most of British Online Archives

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