cross-sectoral development of digital preservation strategies: erpanet and the expansion of...
TRANSCRIPT
Cross-Sectoral Development of Digital Preservation Strategies:
ERPANET and the Expansion of Knowledge
Preservation of Electronic Records: New Knowledge and Decision-making
Symposium 2003
Seamus Ross, Monica Greenan, Peter McKinneyHATII, University of Glasgow
http://www.hatii.arts.gla.ac.uk
www.erpanet.org
Introduction
ERPANET works to enhance the preservation of cultural and scientific digital objects through raising awareness, providing access to experience, sharing policies and strategies, improving practices, and investigating sectoral preservation behaviours.
The Project Nodes
The Humanities Advanced Technology and Information Institute (HATII)
Schweizerisches Bundesarchiv
Nationaal Archief van Nederland
Institute for Archival and Library Science(Università degli Studi di Urbino)
ERPANET’s goals are to:• raise awareness of sources of information about
the preservation of digital objects• stimulate research and encourage the development
of standards in digital preservation• build an online community• promote awareness among software producers of
the preservation needs of the user community
Objectives
erpastudies
erpatools
erpaadvisory
erpaworkshops
erpatrainingerpacharter
erpaproducts
erpaassessments
erpaEprints erpaChitChat
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Aims of the Studies• Build a picture of methods and matched against
context to produce best practices;• Accumulate and make accessible information
about practices;• Identify issues for further research;• Enable cross-sectoral practice comparisons;• Enable the development of assessment tools;• Create material for training seminars and
workshops; and,• Develop contacts.
• Case studies in public and private sectors
• Geographical spread and organisation size
• Diversity of organisational type, activity, regulatory framework and culture
• Outcomes:
– Vertical View: reviews of how different sectors approach digital preservation
– Horizontal View: looking across a range of topics what are best practices across domains.
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• Research by questionnaire and interview• Examined other projects in designing our
survey instrument• 5 to 10 focused case studies grouped into
sector case study reports• 3 people in each company
– Business Manager– IT Manager– Archivist/Records Manager
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erpaStudies (2)Focus of Investigations
• Preception and awareness of risk• Understanding how digital preservation affects the
organisation• Identifying what actions have been taken to prevent loss• Develop an understanding of the way actions are
monitored• Understand how organisations plan future preservation
requirements
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Effort designed to bring organisational perceptions into focusEffort designed to bring organisational perceptions into focus
erpaStudies (2)Main Areas of Investigation
• Assessment of the Sectoral Exposure• Sectoral Awareness and Investment• Policy Building Strategies• Risk Perception & Management• Mechanisms for Compliance & Audit• Cost-Benefit Rationalisation• Technologies
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erpastudiesQuestionnaire split into:
– perception and awareness of digital preservation;
– understanding how digital preservation affects the organisation;
– actions taken;– monitoring of actions; and– future requirements.
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erpastudiesROUND 1
Publishing
Telecommunications
Pharmaceuticals
Broadcasting
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• Planning stage progressed slowly
• More complex than we imagined
• Labour intensive
• Difficulties obtaining successful targets– at the mercy of companies who pull out
especially where they perceived risk
• Lower throughput than we imagined
The Problem
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PUBLISHING
BROADCASTING
PHARMACEUTICAL
TELECOMS
BBC, RAI, ERT, SF DRS Swisscom, Orange
AstraZeneca, Aventis, Bayer, Böhringer, GlaxoSmithKline, Pfizer, Organon NV
Gruppo Mondadori, Hachette, HMSO, Kluwer, OUP, Random House, UNESCO, EU
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Types of Information and Objects
Digitised
Business
Film Audio
LegalBorn-digital
ResearchText
databases
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Types of Objects vary across sectorsTypes of Objects vary across sectors
• Deepest awareness in the broadcasting* and pharmaceutical sectors – Broadcasting awareness reflects reuse recognition– Pharmaceutical awareness economic and compliance
factors
• Publishers are still attempting to establish who is responsible
• Values attributed to digital materials varied:– Reuse, evidential value, risk reduction, and finally
cultural and historical value
Perception and Awareness
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• Broadcasting – Exchange of information
– Cooperating on shared projects
– Interprofessional training of personnel
• Telecommunications & Pharamceuticals– Limited communication and cooperation
• Publishing– Looking outside sector to custodians & distributors
Cooperation
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• Where there were policies they were not implemented across organisations
• Do not plan to adhere to standards and guidelines developed by other communities– Except broadcasting
• Pharmaceutical organisations articulate preservation strategies as part of system and software specifications.
Policy, Strategy and Standards
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• Selection of digital information for preservation– Solid theoretical awareness of issues and the need to determine
retention, but little application of appraisal
• Preservation & Storage– Pharmaceutical sector indicated that digital object size and
proliferation of formats a problem– Most sectors showed little impetus to develop longevity solutions– Pragmatic approach is the most popular (e.g. migration on
demand)
• Digital Preservation Costs– Telecommunications happy with their spend
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A few more points….
A few conclusions
RATIONALE
• Legal
• Cultural
• Historical
• Financial
PRACTICES
• Incomplete
• Individual
• Ad hoc
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Conclusions
• Diversity of strategies and practices
• Activity is fragmentary
• Variation in awareness of risk
• Responsibility rarely taken at corporate level
• Need for better sharing of knowledge
• Except broadcasting most organisations hesitant
• Organisations are waiting for external solutions
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Conclusions
• Does hesitancy arise from lack of awareness?
• Strong sectoral cooperation leads to increased confidence and action (e.g. broadcasting)
• Lack of a single point of contact—no one knows who knows or is responsible
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Objectives Achieved
• Accumulated materials to illustrate methodologies and practices
• Created a basis for establishing practical guidelines
• Raised awareness among several hundred institutions and individuals
• Stimulate sharing of information and experiences
Next StepsAddressing our problem
– More focused case studies
Addressing their problem– Facilitating Co-operation & Collaboration– Tools
• Off-the-shelf policy statements• Business cases and strategies• Digestible guidance on technologies and their preservation implications• Construction of improved models (reference, cost…)• Guidance on repository design, maintenance, audit
– Software vendor engagement
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