Coyote is Open Source Software for Museums to Manage Image Descriptions

The Museum of Contemporary Art (MCA) in Chicago, which has created an Open Source tool that seamlessly integrates image descriptions into its online platform.


by Dave on April 28, 2019, 5:57 p.m.

Coyote is the Open Source software and web application that allows museums to manage the process of providing descriptions of artworks on their web sites. There is a hosted site at live.coyote.pics that allows museums to manage authors and approvals of descriptions. In addition there is a Github repository of the code to allow developers to contribute, install the app on their own sites, and integrate with museum content management systems. This allows museums to provide more accessible content of their collections. One the Museum of Contemporary Art web site, a click of a button reveals descriptions for any user. Screen readers can take advantage of short descriptions, and the museum also provides longer interpretive descriptions that can be optionally accessed as well.