Programs like “Web-At-Risk” are working to change this. The California Digital Library initiated the program under the Library of Congress National Digital Information Infrastructure and Preservation Program (http://www.digitalpreservation.gov/). This project like others that are a part of the LOC’s program are working to archive digital collections that relate to political and social issues of national importance. Hafetz is a lawyer gathering first person accounts, reports, and web sites related to the experiences of Guantanamo Bay Detention Center detainees. He worries that there is “no guarantee that records will survive for future generations to study (Howard, 2009). The web archiving service will help insure that valuable sources of public information on the issue are not lost.
Others have shared Hafetz’ fear that important information is being lost, some even speculate about a future Digital Dark Age, or the possibility of losing access to a wide range of historical documents that have been stored in an obsolete digital format. While this may be an extreme prediction for the future, preservationists are especially concerned with “digital born” (meaning information that has no analog counterpart) information (Cruse and Sandore, 2009, p. 302). Media which require special hardware or software to access can become unavailable within a few decades. An example of this is how there are not readily available disk drives to read a 5 ¼” floppy disk. These are the types of scenarios that the LOC, in partnership with a broad network of concerned organizations are working to prevent. Professionals and members of the community now widely agree that a proactive preservation strategy must be adopted and adapted to prevent the loss of information, and make stored information widely and easily accessible.
Many solutions are now being used to deal with the massive amount of information that requires storage. The ALA has adopted a definition that says that “Digital Preservation combines policies, strategies, and actions that ensure access to digital information over time.” They have created a Preservation and Reformatting Section which provides leadership in the development of new preservation technology (www.ala.org). Dr. Fran Berman, director of the San Diego Supercomputer Center says we need a data infrastructure – what she calls a “cyberinfrastructure” which combines the use of information technologies, including data archives, networks, software, and digital instruments to create a method of preservation that is stable, predictable, and cost effective. She advocates cross sector partnerships, between government, libraries, archives, and the private sector as the best way to approach the issue (Information Technology Business, 2009). The NDIIP has cited the same goal of creating “true partnerships of concerned organizations, working together to sustain access to digital information that is critical to scholarship and cultural heritage nationwide (Cruse and Sandore, 2009). They currently have 60 collaborative projects underway, which focus on information of cultural, historical, and social significance. They focus on implementing structures, policies, and processes that will meet changing information needs. The LOC has invested in services which integrate digital preservation into their core missions, such as LOCKSS (Lots of Copies Keep Stuff Safe) and Portico, which both focus on e-journal preservation.
Many libraries have now refocused on long term stewardship by implementing preservation programs. According to the recommendations set forth by the LOC, librarians and archivists have shifted preservation measures from paper media to magnetic and optical media that are reusable and deteriorate quickly. They rely on a variety of measures which work together to prolong the availability of digital materials. Copying, also called “refreshing” or “migration” is still widely used, often transferring a digital copy back to a hard paper copy (Hedstrom , 1998). There is also a focus on preserving things in the simplest possible digital formats to minimize a need for special hardware or software for retrieval. More commonly, trusted digital repositories, or TDR’s such as those offered by the NDIIP are used, as they become more and more user friendly and sustainable (www.preservation.gov). Also available for use are HD Rosetta permafilm disks, which are a much more durable replacement for microfilm, and can last up to 1,000 years . As technology and ideas about preservation continue to evolve, Librarians and Archivists adapt and persevere in their mission to provide sustained access to information in every format.
References
Cruse, Patricia, and Beth Sandore. ( 2009). Introduction: The Library of Congress National Digital Information Infrastrucutre and Preservation Program. Library Trends. Urbana. vol. 57 no. 3, p.301.
Hedstrom, Margaret (1998). Digital Preservation: A Time Bomb for Digital Libraries. Computers and the Humanities. vol.31. pp. 189-202.
Howard, Jennifer.(2009) Scholars Race to Preserve Guantanamo Records. Retreived from http:chronicle.com/free/v55/i41/41a00103
http://www.digitalpreservation.gov/
(2009) University of California San Diego: San Diego supercomputer center director offers tips on data preservation in the information age. Information Technology Business. Jan. 6, 2009. p.52
6 comments:
Thanks for all of that great information Anna! The transient nature of information and preservation is pretty fascinating. One thing I think will be an issue to watch is how libraries move from preservation type to type. You mention how difficult it is to find 5 1/4 disk drives to read old disk. Then when you do, you have to decide which new medium you will transfer that information to. A CD or DVD? Even though Microfilm last for many, many years, will the production of microfilm readers eventually be phased-out? If so, libraries will be forced to use the technology available to transfer that information to another medium. With "digital-born" information and with already preserved digital files that would be too tedious to "refresh" into hard copies, without careful planning and foresight, libraries and organizations will have to keep moving digitally preserved records to new mediums as the technology gets phased out. It will be pretty cost prohibitive to keep moving files from paper, to DVD, to hard storage, to magnetic tape storage, and so on. Perhaps the permafilm disc will be the answer, so long as technology to read the disc is available.
I think you made a great comment about web preservation and the transient nature of web sites. You are correct, what is here today might not be here tomorrow. This is particularly true right now with the changes that may take place with MeL and the dissolution of the Department of History, Art and Libraries. MeL currently provides access to many archives and digital projects as they are related to Michigan History. If MeL disappears because of funds these archives may disappear as well. While digital preservation is extremely important, we must also think about the ramifications of doing so in terms of long term preservation.
I found it interesting that "digital mediums have a much shorter life expectancy-from 10 to 30 years for magnetic..." I wonder if the life span is dictated by the medium to access the digital info, as with the 5 1/4 floppy, or the digital info itself may be unreadable after 30 years. I would think the info was ok, but the ability to find a device which reads it would be extremely difficult. I think archivists have their work cut out for them.
Digital preservation is one of the reasons I chose to come to library school. It's interesting to me how much people fear information disappearing if it's on in some tangible, held-in-your-hand format like a disk of some sort. This past week in 6080, we read about how Google keeps track of everything it indexes. They have up to 200 petabytes of capacity at their disposal and are currently using just 20 of those. They use triple redundancy/backups to ensure that even if their hard disks in one part of the world are somehow compromised, they won't loose any information.
I'm very glad that many efforts are under way to ensure that digital-born and digitally preserved information isn't lost. Great blog.
My biggest concern is with the rising amount of information out there, how can we possibly keep up with it all? Like you mentioned, there's aren't many computers with the capability to read large floppy disks anymore. Most computers I see now don't even contain a drive for 3.5 floppies. And VHS players are quickly going out of style. And who listens to audio tapes anymore?? How will we find a format that allows us to preserve without having to re-do everything every decade?
Kate, you raised an interesting question about what actually causes the short life span of different technologies - is it that we've moved onto something "better" and you just can't find the readers anymore, or does the actual media itself fail after a certain amount of time? I obviously don't have the definitive answer to that, but I would guess it is at least a little bit of both. As everyone mentioned, it's hard to find old media drives these days. Right on about the 5-1/4" or even 3.5" floppy disk drives. (The 3.5" drives now cost extra on most computers, if they are available at all, whereas they used to come standard.) As for the medium failing, who hasn't experienced a 3.5" floppy disk that just stopped working for no reason? Also I have a ton of old IDE hard drives lying around at home - what happens when you can only get SATA? How will you read those old drives? or what happens after SATA?
Something I have often wondered about is whether there will be a market for -- I don't even know what you'd call them because I'm not sure they currently exist -- an electronics technician who works on outdated technologies, for the purpose of helping archives and museums read old data. Seems like someone could make a good consulting business out of that. You would have to know how to use and repair a lot of out-dated stuff and keep "current" on what's going out of style! Might be an interesting job.
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