Products & Services > Interpretive Media Institute > Museum Exhibit Planner > Museum Exhibit Planner Ver. 16-6

Museum Exhibit Planner, Version 16-6

The Museum Exhibit Planner helps you stay organized and focused. It also allows the planner to identify what elements of the exhibition – i.e. artifacts, graphics and text – are on hand and which need to be developed or obtained.

Dr. Scott Harmon
U.S. Naval Academy Museum

  

Museum Exhibit Planner

FileMaker Pro Software for Planning Museum Exhibits

The National Park Service has developed a specialized system for planning museum exhibits using a database structure. The Museum Exhibit Planner application runs under FileMaker Pro, a widely-used database program. The application is being used by exhibit planners around the country, in government and in the private sector.

The Museum Exhibit Planner assists planners in assembling exhibit elements such as labels, graphics, and artifacts, into a comprehensive exhibit plan. Customized work screens speed tasks such as label writing, editing, graphic sizing, photo reproduction ordering, and artifact tracking. Drop-down menus provide standardized field entries. Print screens are designed to output desktop publishing-quality reports and schedules which are incorporated into final plan packages. The latest version includes tools for managing data on exhibit objectives and digital graphic layouts.

Advantages of database planning:

  • Eliminates keyboarding of repeating data
  • Formats plans automatically
  • Maintains standards for National Park Service exhibit plans
  • Helps planners identify and organize planning tasks
  • Produces comprehensive plans, labels, schedules needed for fabrication
  • Works on PCs and Macs

Download Two Sample Database Files

Posted here are two files containing fully functional versions of the Museum Exhibit Planner. Each version is available either in FileMaker Pro versions 5 and 6, or FileMaker Pro versions 7 and 8. To use these files you must first buy and load FileMaker Pro 5, 6, 7 or 8 for WindowsPC or MacOS.

From your Web browser, click on the file links below. Select save (or download), note the directory where the file will be saved on your computer (or specify a different directory), and then initiate the download. These files are compressed in ZIP format (Help with Zip).

Museum Exhibit Planner, Version 16-6

This is a sample file showing records from the Antietam National Battlefield, Visitor Center Lobby Exhibits project. Once you download this file and open it in FileMaker Pro, you can see how the program works, view sample data and reports, and experiment with the program.

Museum Exhibit Planner Clone, Version 16-6

This is a template file with no data. FileMaker Pro calls such files without data "clones." Use this file to start your own project file. You may begin by renaming the file for your project (for example, GRCA-plan.fp3 for a museum at Grand Canyon National Park). On the bottom of the Main Menu startup screen, type in the park name on the top line, and the name of your project on the second line. You are now ready to begin entering records for your project.

Please note that we have entered six dummy records into your clone database to get you started. They are numbered L-00-000, G-00-000, A-00-000, E-00-000, D-00-000, and P-00-000. They were put there so you can operate the various buttons and menus in the database (databases with no records do not operate properly). Once you begin entering data of you own, you may delete the dummy records. Be careful never to delete records you need. FileMaker cannot restore deleted records.

On the Main Menu of the application you will find a “Help” button. Push this for a series of help screens that will help you understand how to use the program. The help screens offer advice on setting up your project, learning to use databases, and requirements for National Park Service exhibit plans. It also contains a glossary of database and exhibit planning terms.

If you have questions, read our Top Ten Frequently Asked Questions about the Museum Exhibit Planner. If you need further assistance, please contact David Guiney (phone: 304-535-6057; email: David_Guiney@nps.gov). We hope this specialized tool makes your exhibit planning tasks more efficient and enjoyable.

Samples of Program Screens and Reports

These PDF files show sample work screens and reports from the Museum Exhibit Planner application. These will give you a feeling for the look of the program and the kinds of planning information it contains.

  1. Museum Exhibit Planner Main Menu (PDF)
  2. Museum Exhibit Planner Label Screen (PDF)
  3. Museum Exhibit Planner Graphic Screen (PDF)
  4. Museum Exhibit Planner Artifact Photo (PDF)
  5. Museum Exhibit Planner Comprehensive Plan (PDF)
  6. Museum Exhibit Planner Graphic Schedule (PDF)
  7. Museum Exhibit Planner Digital Graphic Layout (PDF)
  8. Museum Exhibit Planner Exhibit Objectives (PDF)
  
Author: Harpers Ferry Center
Last Updated: Friday, 11-May-2007 13:37:23 Eastern Daylight Time
http://www.nps.gov/hfc/products/imi/imi-ex-plan-16-6.htm