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Creating a Dossier

Three ways to create a dossier. Pick whichever fits the workflow you're already in.

From the Dossiers page​

The simplest path.

  1. Dossiers in the sidebar.
  2. Click Create Dossier in the top right. The dialogue has two steps.
  3. Step 1 — a Title, and a Research focus: what should the AI investigate? This guides analysis, follow-ups and item suggestions.
  4. Either Create empty, or Next: Suggest items →.
  5. Step 2 — the suggestions, each with a relevance mark, its kind (file, accession or collection) and a line on why it was suggested. Tick the ones you want and create the dossier with them in it.

Use + Add Items on the dossier detail page to fill or extend it.

From Search results​

The most common path — you've found items via search, you want them in a dossier.

  1. Run your search and apply filters.
  2. Tick the checkbox on a result card; the rest of the cards keep theirs.
  3. Tick more, or Select all N results.
  4. In the strip beside the result count, click Add to Dossier.
  5. Pick an existing dossier, or click Create a new dossier to start one with your selection as its contents.

See Selecting and adding.

From an accession​

Useful when an entire accession is relevant to a project.

  1. Open the accession.
  2. Select items on the Items tab and use Add to Dossier.
  3. Add to Dossier also sits in the accession's More menu, for the whole accession.

Adding items later​

On the dossier detail page:

A dossier detail page: title, item count, Add Items and Explore controls, and the AI Analysis panel below

  • + Add Items (top right) — opens a picker with a search over files, accessions and fonds; tick what you want and confirm.
  • + Find more like this (beside the Items heading) — suggests further items from the archive on the dossier's own research focus.
  • Items can be removed with the × icon on each item row, or ticked and removed together.

There's no AI involved in choosing which items are in a dossier — it's a human decision. Archivers.ai only helps you find candidates faster.

Editing the dossier itself​

  • Click the title to rename
  • Click the description ("Click to add description…") to add or edit description
  • Choose a cover picture under the description, from the dossier's own images
  • Export ▾ in the top right — PDF research pack, Markdown, EAD3 finding aid or CSV, with a tick for Include follow-up questions and answers. The menu also lists the exports already taken from this dossier, and by whom.
  • Delete in the top right — a confirmation dialogue appears before removing the dossier (items themselves are not affected). A deleted dossier can be recovered from the Deleted tab on the Dossiers page.
  • History at the foot of the page lists everything recorded about the dossier, newest first.

Sharing a dossier​

Sharing is a per-dossier setting, not a plan one. Who can see this, at the top right of the dossier page, offers Just me, Everyone in this workspace and On the public website — see What is a dossier?.

What's next?​

  • Run Quick Analysis — a fast AI summary of what's in the dossier
  • Run Full Analysis (Professional and Institution) for a comprehensive narrative, timeline, themes, gaps, and research questions
  • Explore the dossier — start a conversation scoped to its contents
  • Export the dossier as a PDF research pack, Markdown, EAD3 or CSV