Infinity: Auditing Images and Folder Metadata

Infinity is the updated process for FamilySearch records acquisition, digitization, and publication. Some of the Infinity goals are to:

1) Publish digitized record images on FamilySearch.org within days after uploading to servers.

2) Enable patrons worldwide to discover, gather, and connect their ancestors and families faster.

3) Publish records through localized facilities.

I. OVERVIEW OF THE AUDIT PROJECTS DASHBOARD

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The Audit Projects dashboard includes a list of all camera projects available for Image Quality or Folder Metadata review.

Open an internet browser, preferably Google Chrome, and go here.

By default, the language selected in the language filter of audit projects will be the language chosen to display the FamilySearch site. Choose another language to filter the audit projects by clicking on the top, white dropdown menu labeled Language. Currently, the languages in the list only appear with the language names in English. If the language is not listed in the drop-down menu, then there are no audits currently available for that language. Select the project country using the Area filter to see projects assigned to your geographic area. If the geographic area is not listed in the drop-down menu, then there are no audits currently available for that geographic area. You can also add the Project ID to narrow down the number of results, and then click on the Search button. Once you make these selections, the dashboard will display all the audit projects available for that language and selected Area.

Proceed to audit the projects assigned to your group always reviewing the oldest first (shown with a higher Priority). Work on projects with medium and lower priority, the ones most recently ingested, after the higher priority ones have been completed.

High: Always audit these projects first.

Medium: Audit these projects after all High priority ones are complete.

Low: Audit these projects after all High and Medium priority projects are complete.

As you click on each Project Title, another dashboard opens. You will now see the digital folders for this project appearing in individual lines.

The dashboard shows the following information for each folder:

• Image Group Title (which includes place and DGS number)
• Language (in which the records are written)
• Number of Images to Audit (number of images to audit and total number of images per folder)
• Published Time (time elapsed since the images were uploaded to FamilySearch servers)
• Audit Actions (Image Audit and Metadata Audit)

After each audit task is completed, it is grayed out and no longer available. An updated list appears showing what tasks are left to complete. Perform the Image Quality Audit for each DGS first, then complete the Metadata Audit, if that is how you were instructed for your assigned project.
Note: You will be trained in one or both types of quality audits. Please avoid auditing images, languages, or countries for which you have not yet been trained or have not been assigned to audit. Disregarding these rules could lead to inconvenient disruptions and delays in the audit process and subsequent publication of the images.

II. AUDITING IMAGES

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Verifying that images follow established FamilySearch standards is important to guarantee consistency, ensure preservation quality, and provide a favorable experience for viewing images. It is also part of FamilySearch’s contractual obligation to the record custodian or partner. When images do not meet the standards, the camera operator will need to retake them.

Check images for the following image quality issues:

Remember, the issues that we check for during the image quality audit are listed as follows and are issues that the camera operator can fix. See Image Quality Issues for examples and descriptions of image quality issues.

• Information Obscured
• Wrong Capture Mode
• Missing Pages, Documents, or Attachments
• Motion Blur or Out of Focus
• Overexposed or Underexposed
• Improperly Cropped
• Extra Material in Frame
• Wrong Image Orientation
• Multiple Natural Groups
• Reflections
• Duplicate
• Defective
• Other Reason for Retake

Completing an Image Quality Audit

1. In the highest priority assigned project from the Audit Projects list, click on the Image Audit button next to the first listed folder.
    
2. Review the randomly selected images shown for quality issues previously described. Left click the image and move the mouse to reposition the image on the screen. Zoom in and out of the image with your mouse scroll wheel or click the + (plus) and – (minus) signs to the right of the image.

1. You only need to review the sampling of the total images in the folder selected by the program. The table,on the right side of the program, as represented in the graphic below, will list all images that need to be reviewed as part of the audit.

   Note: You may need to scroll down to view all required images. If at any time you need to go back to an image and review it again, click on the hyperlinked image in the list as shown in the following example.

1. If the image meets the quality standards, click the blue Next Image button at the bottom right side of the screen.
    
   • A green checkmark appears next to the image number when, after being reviewed, there is no issue, and the next image is clicked.
   • A red “x” appears when an image quality issue is marked.

2. If you find an image quality issue, select it from the Image Quality Issue field so the image can be retaken. You may also start typing an issue in the search box to filter the suggested image quality issues. If you do not see the correct issue, click Other Reason for Retake and type a short description in the Please describe the issue field.

   Note: Disregard any calibration images. (Calibration images may include focus, grayscale, or color target images). These images may be required by the camera operator to be included in each folder, based on the camera they are using.

1. After all required images have been reviewed, click Submit Audit. A message will appear asking whether you would like to start the Folder Metadata Audit for the same folder. Click on Begin metadata audit if you have completed training in that task. Otherwise, click on Cancel to return to the list of folders that still need to be audited.
    
2. After you have completed an Image Quality audit, any images you marked as “Retake” will be reviewed by a FamilySearch employee during a process called Camera Operator Feedback. If images need to be retaken, the operator will be notified through the Camera Operator Feedback Dashboard. If feedback to the auditor needs to be given, it will be sent through the ROC lead or project supervisor. Review that feedback to learn and improve.

Image Quality Issue Examples and Details

• View this section online
• Download the English PDF

III. AUDITING FOLDER METADATA

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Checking images for metadata quality is as important as checking for image quality. Metadata is information about the images, such as the place where the records were created, dates or date range when the records were created, or document or record type, such as vital (birth, marriage, or death), land, tax, and others.

Metadata helps people search for their ancestors, even in unindexed records that are not yet searchable by name (indexed). Once a record collection is indexed, the metadata enables people to search for their ancestors by name and facilitates record hints to appear in FamilySearch Family Tree.

Review the FamilySearch Metadata Standards for detailed information about these metadata fields: place, date, and record type. Keep these guidelines as a reference when reviewing folder metadata to answer questions and make informed decisions.

Note: If metadata does not meet the standards, you can edit it so it matches the images more accurately. When you edit the metadata, the change applies to the entire folder.
 

Natural Groups

A Natural Group group of records that share basic metadata such as a time period, locality, or record type. Often the records are grouped this way by the archive or by a government agency as bound volumes of books or probate packets. Think of natural groups as something that you might pick up with one hand like a book, a single folder of death certificates, a single probate packet, or a single case file. To learn more about Natural Groups, click here.
 

Completing a Folder Metadata Audit

1. Always review the image of the cover first, then the spine, then the title page in that order to find the date range, record type(s), and locality for the natural group. If there is no cover, spine, or title page or these images do not contain the metadata, then review the first three and last three records. You will usually find the information needed to verify the metadata that the camera operator entered. Check that the listed metadata is accurate; if it is not, edit and correct the information.
    

2. Zoom in and out of the images as needed with your mouse scroll wheel or click the + (plus) and – (minus) signs to the right of the image in order to read the writing.

   If you find an error in the metadata fields or the fields are blank, edit the place, date, or record type by clicking in the field and adding the correct metadata that accurately describes the natural group.

   Important: When editing place, dates, or record type, note that the change will apply to all images in the folder.
    

3. Check images for the following metadata, using the metadata standards and applicable project instructions.

   Place

   Places are listed with the smallest geographic place first and end with the largest place. For example, Maui, Hawaii, United States.

   Use the most specific locality common to all the records in the natural group.

   For example:

   If you see the listed place is “Hawaii, United States” but all the images show “Maui” as a more specific place, edit the field to show “Maui, Hawaii, United States.”

   If you see the listed place is “Hilo, Hawaii, United States”, but the images contain records for “Hilo” and “Puna,” edit the field to show “Hawaii, United States” to include both places.

   Date

   If you see that the date or date range listed is incorrect, edit it to show the correct year or years.

   For a more comprehensive guide to using accurate metadata to describe the date, view the Metadata Standards.

   Record Type

   If you notice that the records you are checking are different from the listed record type, click the Record Type field and select the correct option. You may also start typing a record type in the search box to filter the suggested record types.

   If the natural group contains more than one record type, add each one to accurately describe the content of the entire folder.

   Once you have reviewed the necessary images to verify or correct metadata, check the box indicating you have verified all of the metadata fields for this folder.

1. Click the blue Submit Folder Audit button to complete the Folder Metadata audit and return to the list of folders that still need to be audited. 

2. If you are not able to complete the metadata audit task, click on “Back to Camera Audit List” to release this task, so another auditor may complete it. 

   Note: Do not click on the browser’s “Back” button, click the ‘X’ of the browser tab, or click the ‘X’ of the browser window to return the audit task; these three actions will lock the audit task for this folder preventing another user from completing it.

3. After each audit task is completed, it is grayed out and no longer available. An updated list appears showing what tasks are left to complete.
4. After you complete a folder metadata audit, all metadata changes you made during the audit will be reviewed by a FamilySearch employee during a process called Camera Operator Feedback. If feedback to the auditor needs to be given, it will be sent through the ROC lead or project supervisor. Review that feedback to learn and improve.