Since I’m flipping back over to Spectator quotes this week, I thought I would discuss all the things that make finding them possible! Each quote can be its own beast, so this is more of a general list that can vary.
1. Spreadsheets – Much of the work for the Samuel Johnson Dictionary Project takes place on spreadsheets if you aren’t working on proofreading or something similar – but even then, there is still a lot of ‘sheeting’! These spreadsheets allow multiple people to work on a project at once, provide as much information as is currently available on the quotations, and allow us to plug in the information we find so that someone on the backend (inevitably, the wizard behind the curtain, my supervisor) can verify and put that information into the front-facing portion of the dictionary. Probably my favorite part of the spreadsheets is the “Sort” feature, as I like to spice up my search every now and then.
2. HathiTrust – The host with the most (books), this site holds The Spectator volumes and many, many, maaaaaany others. I use it all the time for my own research outside the project and highly recommend it. The interface is easy to use and their in-text search is probably the best I’ve experienced! If I had to choose between them and Internet Archive it would hands-down be HathiTrust. No offense Internet Archive, we love what you do, but your search leaves much (results) to be desired.
3. LoFi – I can’t just listen to the mindless droll of quotes like “You may ramble a whole day, and every moment discover something new; but when you have done, you will have but a confused notion of the place”* the whole time I’m researching. I would go mad. So big shoutout to videos with the various title keyword mashes of “lofi studying get your work done chillhop you’ve got this beats.” Y’all do the real work.
4. Google – Sometimes you have to dream (or search) a little bigger. When HathiTrust’s fabulous search fails, I will often do a general google search to see if I can find any other information. I’ve mentioned (so many times) Johnson’s proclivity for changing quotes, words, and issue numbers, and sometimes the broader search can help fill in the blanks. Whether it’s finding that he meant issue 291 instead of 91 or he completely changed the place of a conversation, this can majorly help with returning to our own sources!
5. The Infamous Supervisor – Last but not least: my supervisor! Not only would I literally not be allowed to do the internship without them, the weekly meetings always end up being so helpful. Somehow every week I run into a new oddity that needs to get sorted and their guidance, both on the project and in general, is invaluable. Also, they may read this blog and I don’t want to fail. :)
Aside from coffee and a laptop, that’s what I need to do my work for the project! Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have a date with The Spectator (quotes).
*Quote is from The Spectator, however, I couldn’t find the correct issue for it. It says issue 47, but I can’t find it. Can you?