PastPerfect Museum Software

PastPerfect Museum Software is an application for collections archiving. It is designed for museums, but may be used by various institutions including libraries, archives, and natural history collections. PastPerfect allows for the database storage of artifacts, documents, photographs, and library books.[3]

PastPerfect Museum Software
Developer(s)PastPerfect Software Inc. (Formerly Pastime Software Company Inc.)
Stable release
5.0 / February 2010 (2010-02)[1]
PlatformWindows 98, Windows XP, Windows Vista, Windows 7, Windows 8, Windows 8.1[2]
TypeDigital asset management
Websitemuseumsoftware.com

History

PastPerfect was introduced in 1998 as the primary product of the then Pastime Software Company Inc.[4] It was released in version two later the same year, updated to version three in 2001, and then to version four in 2004. It updated to version five in 2010, which remains the most current edition of the program. Pastime Software Company eventually changed its name to PastPerfect Software Inc. after 2007.[5]

Functionality

PastPerfect operates with four basic catalogs for sorting collections material. There is the archive catalog for storing documents, the photograph catalog for storing photos, tintypes, paintings, etc.; the objects catalog for storing three-dimensional artifacts, and the library catalog for storing books that would be included in the institution's library.[6] Images can be uploaded into the catalog, with multiple photos per record.[7] It also stores donor information, and automatically generates Deed of Gift forms and thank you letters upon completing certain steps of the accessioning process.[8] Certain extensions allow for the inclusion of Oral History records and transcripts[9] and there is an additional online function that allows institutions to digitize their collections and make them free to browse on the internet.[10]

PastPerfect also contains a contact list function, for storing donors, members, and employee contact information in a similar catalog format as the rest of the program.[11]

PastPerfect Online

PastPerfect Online is a third-party[12] online service for organizing[13] digitized content for museums,[14] libraries,[15][16] and archives,[17] with 602 current clients.[18] PastPerfect Museum Software has in-house and hosted solutions.[19]

Other museum software vendors

References
  1. "Previous Versions". 2015. Retrieved 25 March 2015.
  2. "PastPerfect 5.0: User-Friendly Collection Management Software".
  3. Porter, S. (2007). PastPerfect Software Review. Retrieved from http://ercpierce.blogspot.com/2007/03/pastperfect-software-review.html
  4. Porter, S. (2007). PastPerfect software review. Retrieved from http://ercpierce.blogspot.com/2007/03/pastperfect-software-review.html
  5. PastPerfect Software Inc. (n.d.) Previous versions. Retrieved from http://www.museumsoftware.com/previous.html
  6. Witt, B.S., Whittfield, J.C., Stepansky, A.J. (2012) Pastperfect software for museum collections: Version 5 users guide. Retrieved from http://museumsoftware.com/v5userguide.html
  7. Lathrop, S., McDaniel, S.L., & Richey, N. (2010). Exposing ourselves: A case study in collection management software implementation. Retrieved from http://digitalcommons.kennesaw.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1352&context=seln
  8. Porter, S. (2007). PastPerfect software review. Retrieved from http://ercpierce.blogspot.com/2007/03/pastperfect-software-review.html
  9. Price, S. (n.d.) Collection management systems: Tools for managing oral history collections. Retrieved from http://ohda.matrix.msu.edu/2012/06/collection-management-systems/
  10. Gomez, B. (n.d.) Online collections: Balancing automation and interpretation. Retrieved from http://www.slideshare.net/brianlgomez
  11. Witt, B.S., Whittfield, J.C., Stepansky, A.J. (2012) Pastperfect software for museum collections: Version 5 users guide. Retrieved from http://museumsoftware.com/v5userguide.html
  12. American Association for State and Local History (2002). Directory of Historical Organizations in the United States and Canada. Rowman Altamira. ISBN 978-0-7591-0002-2.
  13. "About". PastPerfect Online. Retrieved 13 August 2022.
  14. "Museum Services Directory / Collections Management". Museums Association of Saskatchewan. Retrieved 13 August 2022.
  15. "CANCELLED - PastPerfect Museum Software: Is It Right For Me? (Riverhead Free Library)". Long Island Library Resources Council. January 15, 2019. Retrieved 13 August 2022.
  16. Shaw, Marie Keen (26 January 2017). Cataloging Library Resources: An Introduction. Rowman & Littlefield. ISBN 978-1-4422-7487-7.
  17. "PastPerfect Museum Software Version 5.0 by PastPerfect Software, Inc. - Profile". Canadian Heritage Information Network. 10 December 2018. Retrieved 13 August 2022. This profile was completed by the software vendor at CHIN's request
  18. "List of Collections". PastPerfect Online. Archived from the original on 13 August 2022. Retrieved 13 August 2022.
  19. "Answers to your Frequently Asked Questions". PastPerfect Museum Software. Retrieved 13 August 2022.
  20. "Museum Software Market Is Booming Worldwide". Designer Women. Retrieved 13 August 2022.
  21. "Guggenheim Museum: Software Collection Inventory Spreadsheet". Software Preservation Network. Retrieved 13 August 2022.
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