# Presentation: 290355

## Digital Archives - Past, Present & Future Issues

**Anne Van Camp**
**Manager, Member Initiatives**
**The Research Libraries Group**
**Digital Archives Directions (DADs) Workshop**
**June 22-26, 1998**

## What is RLG?

**159 member institutions*****Universities, state and national archives, museums and galleries, national libraries, public and private research repositories, historical societies***
**International composition**
***	******North America, UK and Ireland, Europe and Australia***

**Notes:**
RLG was founded in 1974 by 4 large research instutitions who saw opportunities in using the collaborative approach to solving problems faced by research libraries.
Two main programs have existed in various names and shapes since then: Resource Sharing and Preservation
 Over time, RLG has become best known for:
Education and training
Collaborative preservation projects where RLG chooses a subject, finds funding, and then provides staff support and management of the project.
Development of standards and best practices

## What is RLG? 

**Mission**
**	**To collaboratively solve problems of access and preservation to research resources
**Member programs and initiatives**
- 	Resource sharing
- 	Preservation
- 	Primary sources
- 	Art, law and area studies
**Electronic information network**
- 	Bibliographic database - over 100 million items: MARC records, citation files, archival finding aids, digital objects.

**Notes:**
It’s odd that the original 1974 program saw it’s mission to preserve and thereby improve access.  Little did they know the direction they were heading...

RLG PRESERV members were involved in reviewing issues related to sharing bibliographic and physical/technical information about preserved material at a national and international level (RLIN & OCLC master microfilm records).

RLG Conspectus incorporated subject-based Preservation Scope Notes that described in detail nearly 100 preservation projects, ranging from rehousing to full conservation treatment and from microfilming to digital reformatting.

## Why is RLG a DADs Sponsor?

**We’re a stakeholder in the community trying to tackle preservation and access issues for digital information**
**25 years of experience working with our members to set standards and best practices in access and preservation**

## Problem Statement

**Digital archiving and its attendant issues are common across institutions and are international in scope**
**Need for collaboration on descriptive standards; technology; legal and regulatory issues; storage criteria, etc.**
**Need for coordination of effort to avoid duplication**
**Need to share the research agenda**

## Preservation and Access - Past

**1970s - early 1990s**
**Brittle paper**
**Disintegrating collections**
**Localized resources**
- card catalogs
- paper-based collection guides
**Descriptive cataloging**

## Chaos to Control

**Brittle books and paper**
- Solutions included microfilming, conservation, stabilization and led to the establishment of standards and best practices for reformatting
- Collaborative work produced manuals and other tools to promulgate best practices
- Guidelines then adopted by funding agencies and the community at large
**Access & Description**
- Birth of electronic catalogs to share information about research resources and subsequently about preservation and reformatting activities

## Preservation & Access - Present

**Mid- to late 1990s**
**	**Overwhelmingly digital in nature
- Digital preservation
- Magnetic media
- Metadata
- Web publications
- Electronic records

**Notes:**
When Susan invited me to speak at this workshop, we talked about possible topics.  
	Practical experience w/filming, R&D scanning projects
	Studies in Scarlet
	PRESERV programs

Decided to try to blend all of them and tell you what RLG sees as the issues in Preservation Reformatting today.
	how we’re addressing them
	Tools being developed
	What are issues to consider...

## Chaos to Control

**Establishment of the RLG/CPA Task Force on Digital Archiving: 1994**
- Frame the key problems that need to be resolved for technology refreshing to be considered an acceptable approach to ensuring continuing access.
- Consider alternatives to technology refreshing.
- Make other generic recommendations as appropriate.

**Notes:**
Should we film first or scan first?  Does it make a difference
	in quality?
	in cost?
	what about creating film when you know you won’t film it 	now, but in the near future?

What about metadata...the new buzzword involved with scanning?  How many of us have been entering records about pres. microfilming?  Did you know that’s metadata?
	and what about bibliographic information for digital files?
	what about information to travel with the file to make sure it 	is accessible over time?
Digital Archiving.  Wouldn’t it be nice to know that what you’ve spent time and $$ on will be there *and* be accessible in 10 years?  In 5 years?  

What about Magnetic Media...not only in the case of audio collections, but increasing related to digital archiving?

## Report Highlights

- Analysis of the digital landscape
- Creator responsibility
- Fail-safe mechanism to protect culturally valuable information
- Roles and responsibilities
- Strategies for migration
- Costs and financial matters.

## Interesting Outcomes (1 of 2)

- the recommendation that creators take preservation responsibility
- specified preserving not just the DATA, but USE of the data
- the big challenges are mostly organizational issues
- information *about* the information is important

**Notes:**
Image Capture:Guidelines for creation and preservation of digital resources.
	Three phases: 
	develop content-based Specs (e.g. TOC)
	Develop plan of action, then investigate best practice and   	develop guidelines for each item specified.
Metadata:
	examples: scanner model, scanning software, settings 	(resolution, bit-depth) Compression, other modifications 	(filtering, scaling, etc.)
Pres & Ref Info
	007 equivalents?
	583 coding? Action?  Retention?
	856 URLs embedded here?
Archiving:	
	Analysis of RLG/CPA report on Preserving Digital 		Information and official responses
MagMedia:    analog tape, video tape, data tape, Magneto-optical

## Interesting Outcomes (2 of 2)

- focus on things published in digital form
- the concept of certifying archives
- the concept of fail-safe, aggressive rescue
- there wasn't much feedback from the archival community
- transition from refreshment to migration

## International Reaction

- JISC/BRITISH LIBRARY Workshop as part of the Electronic Libraries Programme (eLib) Organized by UKOLN  Nov. 1995
- Australian Working Party and National Preservation Office

## RLG’s Priorities

- requirements and standards for describing and managing digital information
- standards, criteria, and mechanisms for digital archives
- coordination with international digital preservation initiatives

## RLG Current Agenda

**Preservation Working Group on Digital Archiving**
- Survey of digital archiving needs
- Examine and evaluate models for facilities
- Develop guidelines for appraisal, selection, and priority setting for preserving information in digital form
**Virtual collections projects**
**Training workshops for managing digital projects**
***RLG DigiNews***
**Metadata**
- Metadata Summit
- Working Group on Preservation Issues of Metadata
- Working Group on Archival Metadata Issues
**Working Group on Preserving Magnetic Media**

## Strategic Alliances

**Alliances, both national and international**
- CLIR  	http://www.clir.org
- DLF	http://www.clir.org/diglib/dlfhomepage.htm
- NPO	http://www.bl.uk/npo
- TASi	http://www.tasi.ac.uk
- AHDS	http://ahds.ac.uk
- eLib	http://www.ukoln.ac.uk/services/elib/
- CEI      	http://www.jisc.ac.uk/cei/
- CURL	http://www.curl.ac.uk
- CNI	http://www.cni.org
- National Library of Australia    http://www.nla.gov.au

## National and International Collaboration

**Learn from Colleagues**
**Test and extend new tools and models**
**Identify common problems and solutions**
**Agree on best practices**
**Benefit from shared products**
**Avoid duplication**

## Digital Archives - Future Issues

**Economic models**
- Share experience on projects and vendor relations
**Legal issues**
- Get smarter about protection of privacy while ensuring openness
- Establish basis for aggressive rescue
**Long-term storage issues**
- Establish criteria for certification of digital archive facilities
**International acceptance of metadata and preservation standards**
**Achieve international inter-institutional interoperability**

## Useful URLs

**RLG**
- http://www.rlg.org/ (US access)
- http://www.thames.rlg.org (Int’l access)
**PRESERV Program:**
- http://www.rlg.org/preserv/
***RLG DigiNews*****: **
- http://www.rlg.org/preserv/diginews/
**RLG/CPA Task Force on Archiving of Digital Information**
- http://www.rlg.org/ArchTF/