Service Policy

Description 

Exhibits UofT is intended for creating "exhibits," a term we use broadly to designate all kinds of outreach and communication materials. You might be making a digital companion to a physical exhibit; showcasing research or library materials by adding context; or assembling a simple website. (Of course, your exhibit may fall outside of these use cases--we encourage experimentation!)

Exhibits is not a digital preservation service. Nor does it serve as a catalogue or digital library. If you require help with either of these activities, contact us, and we'll forward your inquiry to the appropriate service group. 

Authorized Users 

  • University of Toronto Faculty  
  • University of Toronto Librarians and Staff 
  • University of Toronto Post-doctoral researchers  
  • University of Toronto Graduate and Undergraduate students working under a faculty member or librarian who can offer sponsorship and editorial and quality guidance and assurance   

Content Guidelines 

  • The work must be an original exhibition or research created by University of Toronto faculty members, librarians, post-doctoral researchers, or sponsored students 
  • The work may showcase archival, historical, or other materials to create a narrative, develop an argument, or share information pertaining to scholarly activities, research, and outreach.  
  • The contributor must ensure that the materials they include comply with Canadian Copyright law.  
  • The work must not include personal, private, or sensitive information 
  • Personal, private or sensitive information may include: email addresses, physical addresses, phone numbers, demographic information about living individuals or individuals who died within thirty years 
  • Whenever possible, ensure your work meets accessibility standards outlined by The Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA) Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) by: 
  • Using the University of Toronto Libraries (UTL) theme, which has been created to be accessible 
  • Ensuring images have alternative (ALT) text  
  • Reviewing web standards before introducing tables or other HTML elements 
  • For an overview of WCAG and accessibility see the Ontario guide 

Rights & Responsibilities of a Submitter 

  • Ensure that materials submitted comply with Exhibits UofT Content Guidelines 
  • Ensure that materials are submitted in a manner consistent with University of Toronto policies, including privacy, accessibility, and copyright policies 
  • By submitting content to Exhibits UofT, you agree to the terms in the Copyright Statement  

Rights & Responsibilities of Exhibits UofT Administrators 

  • Provide guidance and instruction on exhibit-creation processes, account setup and management, and site administration.  
  • Grant and withdraw users’ authorizations to create content on Exhibits UofT 
  • Understand and follow University policies related to Exhibits UofT including privacy, accessibility, and copyright, and content policies 
  • Remove exhibits for violations of policy, legal concerns, or breach of University of Toronto policies 

Responsibilities of the University of Toronto Libraries 

  • Perform system support, troubleshooting, and upgrade as deemed necessary by Exhibits UofT staff 
  • Notify Exhibits UofT users of significant changes to content, e.g. format migration 
  • Comply with UofT policies on issues that affect Exhibits UofT, including privacy, accessibility, and copyright policies 
  • Deaccession Exhibits UofT if major security, technical, financial, or administrative constraints arise 
  • Inform submitters and other stakeholders as soon as possible and offer content backup 

Disclaimer 

The University of Toronto is not responsible for the content of the items contained within Exhibits UofT. 

The University is not responsible for the maintenance and/or performance of external web links within documents and records in the repository  

Exhibits U of T Procedures 

General  

  • Each user account is at the Contributor level to prevent accidental deletion or editing 
  • Each user account can create multiple exhibits 
  • You must fill in your name or project name in the credits of your exhibit(s) 
  • This enables us to forward inquiries and attribute work correctly 
  • If faculty or librarians are sponsoring student work, they must use their own name in the credits and ensure scholarly quality  
  • All items should be placed in appropriate collections 
  • A user account can have multiple collections  
  • Use the “Current Public Theme” or “Toronto Exhibits” theme 

To publish an exhibit: 

  • Ensure your items are in a Collection 
  • Ensure your project team is in the credits of the exhibit 
  • You can then set your exhibit to “public” 

To unpublish an exhibit: 

  • Navigate to your exhibit, and uncheck “public” 

Creating an Account 

Contact us and provide the following pieces of information: 

  • Your name   
  • Your department 
  • Your University of Toronto email address 

We'll then create a user account for you or your department. You'll receive an email to the provided email address asking you to create a password. 

Documentation 

Omeka documentation is available here. Some frequent topics are: