Launch of the Photopoint Project Database (and Instructions)
Posted on 28 September, 2013 by Connecting Country
In the late 1990s, the Castlemaine Field Naturalists Club commenced their Photopoint Project. The objective of the project is to monitor changes in vegetation and landscapes over time by taking regular photos at particular locations in the local area. Largely as a result of the efforts of club members Ern and Lesley Perkins, the project has grown to include more than 1600 photos from over 900 locations.
A year or so ago, Connecting Country received some funding through the Victorian government’s Communities for Nature program to assist the field nats in maintaining the information from this project. First, this involved preparing hard-copy archive-quality copies of every photo, and lodging these for safe-keeping with the Castlemaine Historical Society. Then, opportunistically, a very talented Connecting Country volunteer – Cara Byrt – offered to develop the photos and associated information into a user-friendly database.This CD database was launched at Connecting Country’s AGM on 24 September 2013, with a demonstration by Ern. Free copies were then distributed to all attendees. Additional copies are available at the Connecting Country office during business hours.
Please note:
- Unfortunately the database only works on PC computers (and not Apple computers)
- Due to the size of the database (about 1.9 GB), it works best if you copy the files from the CD onto the hard drive of your computer, and then run the database from the hard drive.
- To start looking at the database, open the CD using Windows Explorer, and then click on the ‘start.html’ file. There should be no need to open any of the folders.
The Photopoint Project will continue, and the database will grow, over subsequent years. This CD provides an amazing snapshot (at as mid-2013) of some of the changes that have occurred in the Mount Alexander Region over the past few decades.
Oh yes, I may have to revolt too, being an avid Mac user.
Maybe we could download a copy from the web in a roundabout way, for example, via DropBox or the Connecting Country website.
Mac users of the world will revolt (including me)!!!
Sorry! We think there may be another roundabout way that Mac users can still view the database. Investigations are continuing. We will keep you posted.