Punch Cards: A Surprisingly Relevant Piece of Digital Humanities History

2025-02-12

This article explores the digitization and reuse of punch cards for knitting machines. Punch cards, a fascinating binary data storage format, are still used today. The article details methods for converting punch card images into data using computer vision and recreating punch cards using CNC machines. The author stresses the importance of high-quality scans and the need for standardized metadata to better preserve and utilize this valuable historical material and foster the transmission and development of knitting technology. The article also highlights the role of community-supported archives in preserving this legacy.

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Public Domain Day Film Remix Contest Winners Announced!

2025-02-08

The 2025 Public Domain Day Film Remix Contest has concluded! Queline Meadows's "When I Leave the World Behind" took first place, masterfully blending film, images, music, and text to evoke a powerful sense of nostalgia. Samantha Close's "The Archive Boogie" and Samara Meyer's "THE SITUATIONSHIP" won second and third place respectively, showcasing the breadth of 1929 cinema and the richness of public domain resources, and a daring sapphic love story. Three honorable mentions further highlighted diverse film styles: Jeremy Floyd's "Moving Pictures Aren't What They Used to Be," William Webb's "Hoffman's Honeymoon," and DIEGO DIAZ & CAN SARK's "The Wayback Machine." All entries can be viewed on the Internet Archive.

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1929 Enters the Public Domain: Mickey Mouse, Gatsby, and More

2025-01-01

On January 1st, 2025, a wealth of works published in 1929 and sound recordings from 1924 entered the public domain! This includes early Mickey Mouse cartoons, Gershwin's 'An American in Paris', Hemingway's 'A Farewell to Arms', Faulkner's 'The Sound and the Fury', and many other culturally significant works. The Internet Archive is celebrating with Public Domain Day events and a film remix contest.

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