Interactive utility

The Oral History Desk

A six-part workflow for recording a mahjong life without extracting or flattening it.

Define the subject

Name the person, community, period, and contribution.

Try thisWrite a one-sentence scope.

Explain recording, storage, editing, publication, and withdrawal.

Try thisGet explicit agreement before recording.

Ask for scenes, objects, people, work, and change.

Try thisAvoid questions that contain the desired answer.

Keep recollection, family account, document, and inference distinct.

Try thisMark dates approximate when they are.

Share transcript, quotes, names, and sensitive passages.

Try thisRecord requested changes transparently.

Store audio, transcript, metadata, permissions, and sources.

Try thisReturn a usable copy to the subject.

A responsible record preserves agency, context, uncertainty, and the right not to publish.