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While Gutenberg's invention is likely to endure for some time, it is indisputable that the prominence of print is diminishing. The recently published Mellon report University Libraries and Scholarly Communication highlights the symbiosis between the humanities and the print medium. It maintains that electronic media will ultimately change the nature of the humanities and spawn a new kind of discourse with fundamentally different features. The report asserts that the shift from print to electronic media, which began in the late twentieth century, will have widespread consequences on the intellectual experience of modern society, reaching beyond print and libraries.

User‐based evaluation in archives and special collections is in its infancy, and this paper aims to discuss the conceptualization, development, and testing of Archival Metrics Toolkits. The development and adoption of standardized metrics to support the management of both analog and digital collections is a critical need in archives and manuscript collections.

The Archival Metrics Toolkits were created, and comprised five user‐based evaluation instruments for archives and special collections in colleges and universities: researcher, archival web sites, online finding aids, student researchers, and teaching support.

The Archival Metrics Toolkits, as developed, represent a first step toward standardized evaluation created specifically for archives. Now it is up to the community to adopt these tools and report their use.

These are the first standardized questionnaires to target archives and special collections and take into consideration the unique environment of primary sources and the specific dynamics involved in connecting researchers with archival and manuscript collections.

Charles Ashley developed an interest in networks whilst at the University of California. In this article he explains why INTERNET groups offer an excellent medium for retrieving and exchanging information.

The purpose of this paper is to present a perspective on the development of digital curation education and practice in museums in the USA.

Methods used include: a historical overview of the development of digital curation, originally as a field of practice – primarily in the sciences – and then as a field of study; a case study of the adaptation of a digital curation curriculum (DigCCurr) framework developed in schools of library and information science (LIS) to a museum studies program; and a discussion of trends in digital curation practices in museums.

The case study (the digital curation certificate program of Johns Hopkins University’s museum studies program) describes a successful adaptation of the LIS DigCCurr framework in a museum studies program.

Findings could help to advance the museum field through the integration of digital curation education, practice and research.

By adopting and supporting digital curation practices, education and research, museums can reach and engage more online users seeking information about museum collections. More online users may also become onsite visitors.

There is little existing literature on digital curation education in museum studies programs.