Hi Jay,

We've had a lot of discussion about this issue.  I agree.  The
criteria do favor museums that have more resources.  However, I don't
think the award process favors any particular geographic area (other
than English speaking).  I've been very careful to find judges that
are geographically and "organizationally" diverse.

We discussed having separate categories for smaller museums but we
run into the problem of having to communicate directly with the
museum and have that museum provide us with accurate information
about the organization.  This poses a big problem for a small group
of judges that are volunteering their time.  It also changes the
nature of this particular award.  BOW award winning sites are
nominated by members of the museum community and are judged by
members of the community.  This could all change in the future.  Each
year, we make improvements to the process and if you would like to be
involved next year, contact David or Jennifer at [log in to unmask]

So, although the award process is biased towards museums with greater
resources, it will still perform an important function.  It will
identify good models from which the rest of the community can learn.

Jim



>Hi Jim:
>
>I think this is an interesting exercise.  However, the criteria do not
>take into account that musea have different sized budgets, different
>numbers of employees, are located all over (in big and small
>towns/cities).  I can only think this "Best of the Web" favors large
>institutions located in large cities with resources devoted specifically
>to on-line development.
>
>Sincerely,
>
>Jay Heuman, Visitor & Volunteer Services Coordinator
>Joslyn Art Museum, 2200 Dodge Street, Omaha, NE, 68102
>342-3300 (telephone)     342-2376 (fax)
>http://www.joslyn.org
>
>>  -----Original Message-----
>>  From: Museum discussion list [mailto:[log in to unmask]]On
>>  Behalf Of Jim Angus
>>  Sent: Monday, January 15, 2001 10:43 AM
>>  To: [log in to unmask]
>>  Subject: Best of the Web Contest
>>
>>  Hello all,
>>
>>  I am chairing the Best of the Web awards that are held in conjunction
>>  with the annual "Museums and the Web" conference.
>>
>>  I would like to invite you to submit for consideration the very best
>>  sites that you think fall into the following categories:
>>
>>          Exhibition
>>          Education
>>          Innovative
>>          Professional
>>          Research
>>          E-Services
>>
>>  A full description of each category can be found on the Best of the
>>  Web awards page:
>>
>>  http://www.archimuse.com/mw2001/best/index.html
>>
>>  Most museums now have web sites.  We hope to identify some of the
>>  best examples that can serve as models for the entire community.  If
>>  you're familiar with a site that you think could serve as an example
>>  of best practice, please nominate that site!  I would like to ask you
>>  to avoid nominating your own sites...  The judging panel consists of
>>  a small group of judges from the international community who have
>>  graciously donated their time and the judges will need to look
>>  closely at every site that is nominated.  We are looking for examples
>>  of best practice and sometimes one's judgement is clouded where one's
>>  own site is considered!  However, if you feel you site is indeed an
>>  example of best practice, by all means, nominate your site!
>>
>>  Nominations will close on February 2, 2001 and the winners will be
>>  announced at the annual conference in Seattle, Washington, March 14 -
>>  17, 2001.
>>
>>  For those of you that are not familiar with the "Best of the Web"
>>  conference, I think it is one of the best sources of information
>>  about museums and the web and highly recommend participation in the
>>  conference.  For more information about the conference, please follow
>  > this link:  http://www.archimuse.com/mw2001/best/index.html
>>
>>  Jim Angus
>>  Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County
>>  900 Exposition Blvd.,
>>  Los Angeles, CA  90007
>>
>>  213 763-3317
>>  [log in to unmask]
>  > http://www.nhm.org
>>  http://www.ed-resources.net
>
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--

-----
Jim Angus
Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County
900 Exposition Blvd.,
Los Angeles, CA  90007

213 763-3317
[log in to unmask]
http://www.nhm.org
http://www.ed-resources.net

=========================================================
Important Subscriber Information:

The Museum-L FAQ file is located at http://www.finalchapter.com/museum-l-faq/ . You may obtain detailed information about the listserv commands by sending a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "help" (without the quotes).

If you decide to leave Museum-L, please send a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "Signoff Museum-L" (without the quotes).