5 Qualities of a Good DH Project:

1.) Easy to use

2.) Useful information

3.) Easy to search

4.) Sources states

5.) New Perspective on information

What makes a good DH project?

The user should be able to easily and efficiently navigate the project; necessary directions should be provided and the layout should not be confusing.  The project itself should contain information that would be useful to scholars and the different pieces of data that are collected should be related to each other and relevant to different types of research. The user should be able to efficiently search the project for whatever they need so they can make sure they are using the proper program for what they need and find information quickly. Sources should be clearly stated so the user knows where the information is coming from and can research the sources further if needed. The project should give the scholar a new way to look at the information at hand, whether it be through an interactive map or an interactive digital version of a piece of literature.

How does DH let scholars ask new questions?

Digital Humanities projects give scholars the opportunity to look at data in a completely revolutionary way.  Maps are no longer on paper, they can now be on a computer screen with an unlimited amount of features to help the scholar.  Maps can be zoomed in and out, different locations can be highlighted, the possibilities seem endless.  Thousands of books can be uploaded to one project; the user can compare all the words that are being used and study the language used.  Now that scholars have these advanced tools to look at different areas of the humanities they can ask new questions because they have been given a new perspective.  They are able to look at topics in different ways and make connections between different data.  For example, a scholar comparing a database of digital copies of books can ask questions about how different words changed over time.  Instead of reading every single book and comparing how each word was used, the scholar can use a computer to search through the books in a matter of minutes.