define future: finding the common ground between it and digital preservation

Define "Future" Finding the Common Ground Between IT and Digital Preservation

Chuck PatchMuseum Computer Network

Washington DC November 2008

Roles

Information Technologist Archivist / Records Manager Data Creator Digital Curator Museum Curator

MCN 2008 Washington DC 2

Characteristics (Stereotypes?) of IT

What IT deals with: Top priority is data infrastructure

Plan Select Implement Support (Start over)

Provide Information Systems solutions in response to client requests

Clients are “Content Specialists” IT helps clients achieve their goals


Characteristics (Stereotypes?) of IT

MCN 2008 Washington DC

How IT approaches tasks: Bottom – up approach to problem solving

Define the PROBLEM and develop a plan Analyze and model processes Design a solution Implement Support it Start over from the beginning

Characteristics (Stereotypes?) of Archivists and Records Managers

What archivists and RM’s deal with: Top priority is the “knowledge”

infrastructure Systems of documentation essential

to business activities Satisfaction of legal requirements Identification of historical importance

of systems of information Create solutions pro-actively

Clients are “Content Specialists” Archivists help the organization

retain its identity


Characteristics (Stereotypes?) of Archivists and Records Managers

How Archives and RM approach tasks: Understand the organization’s functions from the top

down Identify the key activities within the organization Understand the business processes that produce

documents and records from the bottom up Work with data creators to create categories and

classifications for information from the time “records” are created (scheduling)

Make judgments about what should be kept and for how long (appraisal)


Where IT and RM / Archives Intersect

ALL data is now digital Digital object preservation requires both

archival and IT involvement IT for all technical aspects

Back-end data storage Systems to support long-term preservation

Archival to identify critical steps in the electronic records creation process

Archival to help organize the masses of digital information accumulating in network drives


Where IT and RM / Archives Don’t Intersect

Time Horizon Information Technology

The future = 5 Years? The distant future = 10 years?

Records Manager Scheduled retention

Archivist The future = Forever?


Where IT and RM / Archives Don’t Intersect

For IT “content” matters primarily in regard to system function:

How does it effect bandwidth? How much storage does it require? What systems support it?

IT has no formal appraisal method for content as it relates to business function

IT does have formal or at least defacto appraisal methods as it relates to system function


Tradition (-al misconceptions)

World divided into physical and digital Digital “belonged” to IT Physical data belonged to archivist and

curator “Record”, “Archival” = physical = paper Artifacts belonged to curators

“Records” are “dead” objects Nobody has to deal with them until they

aren’t useful (active) anymore


Life –Cycle vs Records Continuum View of Document Management


Archivist / Records ManagerArchivist / Records Manager

Characteristics of the Data Creator

“Important” stuff is printed out and filed according to RM guidance

Absence of guidance re: digital information leaves organization to the data creator

How to organize file directories Where to put them How to back them up File Naming conventions

Long – term information management may not be a first priority


Characteristics of the Data Creator

Files frequently have version identity problems

Less than ideal file management coupled with less than ideal physical output

Filing and categorization idiosyncratic Rarely matches to organizational standards Rarely matches that of other users


Email – Proving the rule

In most organizations the province of IT Never designed for permanent

management of messages or files Users realized from the first that it was a

great organizing tool Really easy, intuitive metadata

To, From, Subject, Date, description (message body) Built in directory structure Great place to store documents (attachments)


But…

An organizer, but not a permanent one

“Archiving” Hardly anyone uses it In proprietary format Those who do store

them on the C drive No one manages the

archives


Progress

IT reacts to content issues Content issues are raised by stake holders If it can be “databased” it can be brought

under control Collections Management Digital Asset Management Content Management Electronic Records Management

Solutions, whatever their names, derive from specific user communities, all speaking digital


What the Heck is a “Digital Curator”

Rarely seen in the wild Not a person but a role – Maybe an

organizing principle Concerned with the long-term

preservation of digital objects Involved in appraisal of digital objects

Not necessarily the same kind appraisal used by a Records Manager or Archivist

Many aspects of digital curation subsumed in the work of archivists and records managers, IT specialists


The Principles:

Nearly all information we create is in digital format

Everything else is a derivative There is no tactile digital original Digital objects change their names as often as their

formats Not all digital objects that are not records

should be regarded as temporary Management of digital objects must begin at

creation The “M” word


The Open Archival Information System (OAIS) reference model


Digital Repositories

Most organizations are unprepared to implement digital repositories (or even think about them!) Inadequate institutional organization Poor high and low level understanding of

the issues Inadequate policy development Lack of technical skills


While waiting for the repository…

Create simple policies for Location of different categories of data Directory layouts File naming Develop categories and use them

everywhere Apply metadata using simple tools you can

find around the office


RSM (Really Simple Metadata)


Educating the digital curator

Requires some IT knowledge Requires archival and RM concepts AND

IF you’re in a museum…

DIGITAL ART.


define future: finding the common ground between it and digital preservation

Documents

digital mcn

archives mcn

priority mcn

identity mcn

users mcn

goals mcn

beginning mcn

long appraisal mcn