This came in from Erik Peterson:

What I want to do, I think, is called “topic modeling.” I saw one demonstration using Zotero’s stand-alone app (not the Firefox plugin) and the Papermachines plug-in. I want to use this or something like it. But I don’t know how to start, really. I’ve also been clued in to JSTOR’s Data for Researchers, which I think gets to some of this information, and Web of Science’s citation mapping, which gets to other bits of this. But I confess that I don’t know how to use these pieces of software.

I also wonder if learning Python will help, though the last computer languages I learned were BASIC and MSDOS.

So I am here to learn, and be supportive, but not teach or present!

More background on Erik:

I’m lucky enough to have a dedicated Digital Humanities center at UA, but unlucky enough that it has gotten popular in the last two years. What that means is that, while I’ve had fun working on digital humanities projects with my classes (this one is especially fun: gamearchive.as.ua.edu), I’ve been mostly on the “facilitating” end rather than the “making” end.

So now he needs some expertise and is looking for contacts.

As current chair of the Technology and Communication Commission, I propose that we brainstorm as a group and come up with a list of digital projects in the discipline. This will have two uses: First, we’ll use it to feature the best and most innovative projects on a new page of the HSS site: HSS Digital. We’ll classify those projects into different categories so that we can feature important innovations in the digital realm as well as provide newbies as well as digital veterans with tools and help dealing with everything from data management plans and funding to Python tutorials and the like.

Second, we’ll turn this list into a historical registry of projects classified and updated constantly in the IsisCB. The IsisCB will then begin to offer information to people about non-print resources, ranging from digital archives to blogs and exhibits.

Digital Historians and anyone interested doing a digital project, the HSS is sponsoring its 3rd annual THATCampHSS.
 
Sunday, November 6, at the HSS Conference Hotel — the Westin Peachtree in downtown Atlanta (210 Peachtree St. NW): from 9:00 am to 2:00 pm.
 
People of all experience levels are welcome. Newbies and digital veterans, alike. Teach a skill, play with an app, learn a tool, …
 
THATCampHSS is an “unconference,” if you come you own it. Those who show up schedule the talks and topics. If you have a project, you can talk about it or get people to help you with it.
 
Some food and refreshments will be provided, including a light lunch.
 
Please join us!
 
Contact us at:  THATCampHSS (at) gmail (dot) com