There has been some debate in oral history circles about the merit of full transcriptions over key word summaries. Summaries may certainly be quicker, demand limited resources, and prove useful for search engines, indexing and initial research purposes. However, there can be little doubt that - when it is possible and financially viable - a full textual rendition of an entire interview recording fundamentally and exponentially enhances the value of the recordings by providing a substantial number of additional and important benefits:-
