Sustainability and preservation:

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NOF-Digitise Sustainability WorkshopPreservation
London, 16th May
Alastair Dunning Arts and Humanities Data Service
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Sustainability and Preservation

• The first line of defence against loss of
  valuable digital information rests with the
  creators of digital information.
• US Task Force on Archiving of Digital
  Information (1996)

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Responsibilities

• Creators of digital objects have the initial and
  in some cases a continuing role in preserving
  access to them. They are they the first
  managers of preservation
• Most individual creators are not expected to take
  on the long-term commitment to preserve the
  digital content they create.
• Unless creators take initial steps to
  facilitate ongoing access to their material,
  access may be lost or the ability of another body
  to take responsibility for preserving access may
  be severely inhibited.
• National Library of Australia statement of
  principles for the preservation of and long-term
  access to Australian digital objects

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Technology not the problem

• Avoid fetishisation of technology
• Choosing hardware is part of a larger process
• Technologies may change, but so do staff and
  organisational memory
• Hence need for good documentation

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What does it mean for me? (1)

• Many NOF projects may be working in larger
  organisational framework
• They may have preservation strategies in place
• Is their strategy watertight?
• Still requires discussion of rights and
  responsibilities of various

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What does it mean for me? (2)

• Creators who are unable or unwilling to accept
  the responsibility of long-term preservation will
  need to negotiate with collecting institutions or
  archives to provide this service for them
• There may be specific ingest criteria with which
  they need to comply
• There may be rights issues to settle
• It will cost

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What does it mean for me? (3)

• Establishing dialogue with other stakeholders to
  examine the issue of access, use and re-use of
  the digital resource over time
• Whatever the strategy and institution selected,
  key questions will be raised

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Questions to be asked

• What exactly needs to be preserved and at what
  level of functionality?
• Quality-assured?
• IPR implications?
• Importance of accompanying contextual information
• Negotiated cooperation of all involved in
  essential

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What does it mean for me? (4)

• Employing open standards and formats
• Generating robust metadata and keeping careful
  documentation
• Good management of media and systems
• Possible importance of migration and refreshment

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Life after NOF

• Many digitisation projects cite enhanced access
  as a major objectivebut unless due care and
  attention is given to how that access can be
  maintained over time, it may well be
  short-lived.
• Jones Beagrie Preservation Management of
  Digital Materials Handbook

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An holistic approach

• Life cycle management
• Positive benefits of forward thinking
• Establish responsibility
• Preservation leads to access, but does not equal
  access

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Some URLs

• Newham Case Study http//ahds.ac.uk/newham.htm
• PADI Preserving Access to Digital Information -
  http//www.nla.gov.au/padi/
• CEDARS Curl exemplers in digital archives -
  http//www.leeds.ac.uk/cedars/
• Preservation Management of Digital Materials
  Neil Beagire and Maggie Jones http//www.jisc.ac.u
  k/dner/preservation/workbook/