Madrona | The Open Source Museum Collection Management System

Hello all,

So what has been happening with Madrona Community? It is currently at internal version 0.8. That means that it is not quite to the stage that we can recommend it for the day-to-day collection management needs of our cultural partners, but it is nearing feature completion.

Over the last couple of months we have improved search to return more relevant results, improved the reporting engine and added a number of canned reports, and developed the first version of the REST API, to allow for integration with other tools (such as on-site kiosks, etc).

Through its 3-year plus history, Madrona’s development has been entirely funded by zero one design. With our clients in the Galleries and Museums sectors (especially in British Columbia) going through a “lean time”, we have had to focus our energy on nurturing and keeping paying clients — at the expense of Madrona. We are not prepared to put out an inferior product (you only get one chance at a first impression!), so this means that Madrona development has slowed down considerably.

We are still optimistic for a 2010 launch, but much of that will depend on how our sector rebounds over the next few months. Hopefully, for all of us, museums and galleries will have a better 2010 than 2008/2009…

We’ve been asked a few times  as to what Madrona means.   For us, of course, it means a collection management system - but where did the name come from?

When we set out to name this project, we wanted a name evocative of where we live and the product we created. Madrona is a type of tree …

any of several evergreen trees belonging to the genus Arbutus, of the heath family, esp. A. menziesii (Pacific madrone) of western North America, having red, flaky bark and bearing edible reddish berries.
Thanks Dictionary.com!

The tree, also known locally as the Arbutus, is distinctly Pacific Northwest - it is about as “us” as a tree could be.  It also is a nice metaphor for a collection management system with roots, branches and leaves.  As well, it gives us room to grow as we expand Madrona into a fully functional museum system - Sitka, Garry Oak, Pacific Willow all fodder for the next product.

Finally, there are some great instances of Madrona or Arbutus trees in art:

Sophie Pemberton’s Straits of Juan de Fuca and Arbutus Trees
http://collection.aggv.bc.ca/explore/14638

Emily Carr’s Arbutus Tree
http://collection.aggv.bc.ca/explore/19644

Walter Joseph Phillips’ Windblown Tree, Long Bay
http://collection.aggv.bc.ca/explore/7228

Welcome to the home of Madrona – one of the very first open source museum collection management systems.   This is a labour of love for the Madrona team – nearly three years in the making and we expect to launch the first version of the program in late 2009.  We are presently in the midst of beta testing and have a group of museum professionals who have been kicking around the program and letting us know what they think.  If you are a museum professional interested in being part of the beta test or have suggestions as to how to make a better collection management system, send us an email at zeroone@zeroonedesign.com.

Watch this space for news on the program, the launch and little hints on features to be included.  You can also join the Madrona community on Facebook or follow us on Twitter.