How to use CityArk?

[Mehrtsgirl]

I'm going to confess that I simply don't know how to use CityArk. I can get down to a certain level and then don't know if I should be expecting a file to open to reveal all its wonderful contents or whether I am meant to request that file or download it from the option in the left hand menu.

For example, yesterday I went to Chatham, St Mary Parish Records - Charity and School series P85/25 1823-1939 - Minutes of the Trustees file P85/25/2 1852-1886. This last file comes up in red and has a 'document' icon which led me to believe I could click on it and access the Minutes. Nothing happened. I tried 'download' in the left hand menu bar and got an error message. I then tried various other documents from a couple of other collections using the download option and got pages headed up by a description but no content.
 
I also found that the system was sluggish and wondered if I wasn't waiting long enough or if there was a broader issue.

I note that not all catalogues are available online so perhaps I just picked those that aren't? I'm also in Australia and wondered if that was the issue? And of course I'm fully open to the fact that its the operator not the collections

Any advice would be gratefully received as a lot of my research is centred on the Medway area. TIA

[polarbear]

Hi there,

I'm going to see if I can find what you were looking for usng my method and then I will come back and type it out for you if it works. I'll also let you know if it doesn't....it's been a while since I used it.

PB

[polarbear]

Hi again,

I went through and believe I reached the point you did with the red record. Clicking on the red record brings up a set of info at the top. Unfortunately, it appears that this record has not been digitized. If it had been, it would say digitized version and there is a .pdf number to click on to access the records. I'm not sure if this link will work but if it does it will show you what a page with digitized records looks like compared to what you would presumably have seen....

https://cityark.medway.gov.uk/Details/archive/110003991


It looks like you are able to get to records then? I didn't find the system to be sluggish though. Let me know if you need more help with this.

PB

[polarbear]

Adding to the last post....

Since the link seems to work I thought I'd add a link to the page you should have found for comparison. You can see that it doesn't say digitized version....

https://cityark.medway.gov.uk/Details/archive/110002414

PB

[Mehrtsgirl]

Thanks PB.
The links worked - thanks for the comparison.
I've gone back in and looked again at a few files I would like to access and couldn't find any that included the digitised link. I also did a couple of random picks and both of those did have the digitised link! 
Thank you for the advice - I now know what is possible and what I should be looking for. Now to systematically trawl my way through the files I think will be helpful to me and see if they have been digitised.
Appreciate the help 

[polarbear]

You're very welcome.

Compared to how the system worked a few years back, when one had to call up each page seperately to view, every page of a digitized set is now downloaded and you can scroll through easily. It is just a bit more complicated a process to find the record now.

Good hunting.
PB