Ultimately, staff and administration must work together to implement an effective program. A Few Words on Digital Preservation Digital preservation is a strategy to retain digital collections in a usable form for the long term. Yet, electronic library and archival resources present a host of preservation problems. Only a handful of institutions have developed digital preservation programs, so the dearth of information is understandable. Particularly useful for needs assessment and planning is the section on selecting materials for digitization.
Many institutions begin with one digitization project.
The important point to keep in mind is that digital preservation initiatives are most effective when they are carried out as part of a general preservation program. No End Planning is an ongoing process. Most managers agree that planning never ceases. It is easiest to focus on levels of planning, some of which may take place sequentially, but most will occur simultaneously. The preservation needs assessment will start you on your journey.