Digital Preservation for Real ArchivistsDigital Preservation for Real Archivists

Huddersfield University

19 October 2009http://www.flickr.com/photos/intherough/3470183543

Over 850 Years Old

Over 850 Years Old

10 Years Old…and obsolete

Ditto was released by Iomega in the 1990s as a tape-based backup storage device. It was discontinued in 1999.

ObsolescenceObsolescence

• Hardware• Software• Storage Media

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Digital FragilityDigital Fragility

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“A decidedly analogue approach to a digital problem”

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• Survey what you’ve already got• Document it:

– File types & software versions– Storage Media– System documentation / user manuals

• Consider what you would like to get (in an ideal world) & how you would like to get it:– Preferred file formats list – Depositor guidelines and education– Digital archives deposit documentation– Protocols for copying and transfer

Be PreparedBe Prepared

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Impress your techies - Impress your techies - Show them you’re serious!Show them you’re serious!

Portrait of a Gentleman Techie, after Thomas de Keyser

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Get over the originality complex!Get over the originality complex!

• Information + Provenance can trump originality

• Copying for preservation (migration) has a long and distinguished heritage

• What does ‘original’ mean in a digital world anyway?

• Understand and accept the idea of ‘reasonable loss’

MLA Yorkshire E-Bulletins -MLA Yorkshire E-Bulletins -A Practical ExampleA Practical Example

“I never have these types of problems with digital”

• Don’t panic at the format and overcomplicate – look for simple solutions that are ‘good enough’

– Make multiple copies (ideally store one copy on a server that is backed up)

– Research software tools and preservation services (eg PRONOM http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/pronom)

– Archival theory is still relevant. Develop new procedures alongside traditional workflows.

• Don’t start with long obsolete material – it’ll be much harder

• Deal with reality, not with ‘what ifs’.• Do not underestimate your expertise with regards to

cultural factors/interpersonal skills vital to digital preservation (eg privacy concerns, depositor liaison)

• Do appreciate your limitations but understand others are in the same boat! Document, document, document – and look for help.

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The Preservation ChainThe Preservation Chain

Doesn’t five years always come first?

You don’t need to aim for ‘forever’.

Just the next generation of recordkeepers.

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“Digital information lasts forever, or five years – whichever comes first” Jeff Rothenberg

Alexandra EveleighCollections Manager

West Yorkshire Archive ServicePO Box 5

Nepshaw Lane SouthMorleyLeeds

LS27 0QP

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