Data Model – Concepts Guide

This page explains, in simple language, how information is organized in our research system.

It is written for club members and contributors.

No technical or ICT knowledge is required.

The goal is only to understand:

How do we describe our history in a clear and structured way?

Why do we need a structure?

During research we collect many things:

photographs
letters
reports
names of people
buildings
cities
events

Without structure:

information gets lost
files are duplicated
relationships are unclear
searching becomes difficult

The system simply helps us:

name things consistently
connect related information
keep sources organized
make everything searchable

It does NOT change how we do research.

It only makes it clearer.

The basic idea

We separate different kinds of things.

For example:

the building itself
the people involved
the city
the photos and documents

Each of these is treated differently.

This avoids confusion.

The main concepts

HeritageObject — what we study

A HeritageObject is the main subject of research.

It answers:

What is the thing we are talking about?

Examples:

a sanatorium
a building
a room
a hospital
a railway line
a tram network
a historical site

If something existed in history and we want to describe it, it is probably a HeritageObject.

Person — who was involved

A Person is a historical individual.

Examples:

doctors
sisters
teachers
architects
patients

Persons act and make decisions.

Organization — which group acted

An Organization is a group or institution.

Examples:

congregations
companies
foundations
government bodies

Organizations act collectively.

Place — where things happen

A Place is a location.

Examples:

a city
a region
a building site
a country

Places describe location only.

They are not actors.

Many photos, maps, and documents may belong to the same place.

DigitalAsset — our sources

A DigitalAsset is a source that documents something.

Examples:

a photograph
a scan of a letter
a newspaper article
a postcard
a PDF
a plan or drawing

DigitalAssets are the evidence for our research.

Each source gets its own page and description.

File — storage only

A File is just the stored JPG or PDF.

Files provide storage.

They get meaning only through DigitalAssets.

In short:

File = storage DigitalAsset = meaning

ResearchChapter — telling the story

ResearchChapters help organize interpretation.

They structure the narrative.

Examples:

Early years
War period
Reconstruction
Daily life

Chapters explain the story but are not historical objects themselves.

Keywords — helping search

Keywords are simple tags that help find things quickly.

They do not define structure.

How things connect

In practice:

HeritageObjects are documented by DigitalAssets
Persons and Organizations are linked to HeritageObjects
Places tell us where things are located
Chapters organize the story
Files store the actual data

Everything is connected, but each concept has a clear role.

Hierarchies (things inside things)

Some things can contain smaller parts of the same kind.

For example:

a building contains rooms
a city contains neighborhoods
a chapter contains subchapters

This is natural and helps us describe complex structures.

Numbering and file names

DigitalAssets receive automatic identifiers such as:

 CH03-ROM-0007

These numbers are created by the system.

Contributors do not need to invent names.

Files simply use the same name as their DigitalAsset.

This keeps everything consistent and easy to find.

What contributors need to remember

You do not need to think about the technical side.

Simply:

describe things clearly
choose the correct type (object, person, place, source)
upload files with the suggested names

The system handles the rest.

Summary in one sentence

We separate:

what we study
who was involved
where it happened
which sources document it
and how we tell the story

This keeps our history organized and easier to understand.

Status

Conceptual guide for contributors