computer science

Site Recorder

Site Recorder is a computer science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Site Recorder rather than just read about it. In short: Site Recorder is a geographical information system (GIS) and information management system (IMS) designed for use in maritime, freshwater and intertidal archaeology. Site Recorder can be used on maritime and intertidal archaeology projects for real-time data collection, decision support, publication, archiving and data migration.

Key takeaways

Site Recorder belongs to computer science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Site Recorder to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Site Recorder from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Site Recorder is a geographical information system (GIS) and information management system (IMS) designed for use in maritime, freshwater and intertidal archaeology. Site Recorder can be used on maritime and intertidal archaeology projects for real-time data collection, decision support, publication, archiving and data migration. The program is designed for use by archaeologists rather than GIS experts. Site Recorder can replace the many separate surveying, drawing, finds handing and reporting programs usually used on site. Site plans can be drawn that connect the positions of finds drawn on the plan with the positions of survey points, so the plans adapt and improve as more survey and recording data is added. Site Recorder can be used for all phases of an archaeological project:

Excavation recording Site assessment and monitoring Survey planning and recording Publication and reporting Reprocessing existing site data Resource evaluation and management Archiving Tracking boats, divers and remotely operated underwater vehicles (ROVs) Data collection application for publication web sites

Research Site Recorder has been used as a tool in the research into digital recording during archaeological excavations and for electronic publication of full documentary archives from sites. As part of this, a core database schema for recording maritime shipwreck sites has been developed and published. Site Recorder and its predecessor program Site Surveyor have also been used for research into survey methods that can be used on sites underwater. From this research the Site Recorder SE (Student Edition) software was developed and made freely available to allow all archaeological projects access to high accuracy surveying ability. Site Recorder SE was adopted by the Nautical Archaeology Society training program in 2006.

Significant projects Site Recorder, Site Recorder SE, and Site Surveyor have been used on a number of significant archaeological projects:

The excavation of the Mary Rose in 2003-2005 by the Mary Rose Trust The excavation of the Kizilburun shipwreck by the [Institute of Nautical Archaeology] Reprocessing of the documentary archive from the USS Monitor by NOAA Mapping the wreck of HMS Firebrand (1694) in the Isles of Scilly by CISMAS. The excavation at Pabuc Burnu in Turkey by the Institute of Nautical Archaeology in 2002 Mapping the wreck of HMS Colossus (1787) in the Isles of Scilly by Kevin Camidge Geophysical survey and documentary archive publication on the Cattewater Wreck in [Plymouth] by the University of Plymouth and 3H Consulting Ltd. Reprocessing and publication of the documentary archive from the Resurgam submarine in 2008. The excavation of the Tile Wreck by ADMAT in the Dominican Republic in 2008 The survey and excavation at Tektas Burnu in Turkey by the Institute of Nautical Archaeology. The excavation of HMS Pandora in Australia by the Queensland Museum Galle Harbour maritime archaeological impact assessment by the Western Australian Museum in 2007 Documentation of the historic vessel Wawona by East Carolina University.

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Site Recorder

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Site Recorder claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In computer science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Site Recorder before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Site Recorder ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Site Recorder

In research: Site Recorder appears in computer science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Site Recorder in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Site Recorder is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics GIS software, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Site Recorder outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Site Recorder in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Site Recorder means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Site Recorder out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Site Recorder in simple terms?

Why does Site Recorder matter?

Because it connects several computer science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Site Recorder?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Site Recorder.