PARBICA 14Recordkeeping for Good Governance

Toolkit TrainingWorkshop 1 – Digital records

Samoa, August 23, 2011

Helen Walker – National Archives of Australia Emma Buckley - National Archives of Australia

Anna Gulbransen – Archives New Zealand

August 23 - Workshop 1 sessions

Time Session9.00 – 10.00 Session 1 – Managing Email

10.00 – 10.30 Morning Tea

10.30 – 12.00 Session 2 – Scanning Paper Records to Digital Records

12.00 – 1.00 Lunch

Yesterday…• Phase 5 Toolkit products• Digital records and recordkeeping - ‘similar

to, but different from’ traditional record keeping

• Assessed level of digital readiness• Looked at the best strategy for managing

digital records

Session 1 – Managing email

Managing email – key points

• Email is a type of record and needs to be captured

• Not all emails are records• Titles of email should have a clear meaning

(eg removing the ‘RE:’ and indicating what the email is about)

• Staff need rules about what to capture, who will capture and where to capture for ongoing management

What to capture?

• The email record decision tree canhelp you decide

Using the email decision tree

Example 1:

Using the email decision tree

Example 2:

Using the email decision tree

Example 3:

Who is responsible for capturing emails?

• Everyone uses email – everyone is responsible!

• Organisations need to establish rules for email capture. Common options are:– the sender of the email– a recipient with responsibility for an action– a secretary or personal assistant

When should an email thread be captured?

• Capture each email as it is sent or received (lots of email, but less risk of emails not being captured)

• Capture the last email of the thread (not as many emails, but more risk of emails not being captured)

• Capture the significant points in the thread, such as which/when major decisions were made.

Where should email be captured?

• Into a records management system• If your organisation doesn’t have an EDRMS,

options include:– Printing to paper and filing– Saving emails to directories, archiving

systems or shared drives

When should I use email?

When should I use email?

• you want to deliver a message quickly, but do not necessarily need a quick reply

• you want to deliver the same message to a large number of people

• you want to create a record of a spoken conversation

• you need to contact a colleague in a different time zone.

When should I use a different method of communication?

When should I use a different method of communication?

• you need an immediate response• you are sending confidential information and

you cannot risk a breach of privacy• you need to hold a back-and-forth discussion• you need to deliver bad news or discuss an

emotional matter• you need to involve a lot of people in your

discussion – an option such as teleconferencing may be better.

Email checklistQuestion Y/N

Am I sending the message to the right person?

Does the subject line clearly convey what the message is about?

Is the body of the email well-structured and clearly written?

Does the message contain anything that could offend or harm someone?

Have I checked the spelling, grammar and punctuation?

Do I expect a reply or some other action? If so, have I specified a timeframe?

Does the message contain sensitive information? If so, should I still send it by email?

Does the message contain previous messages? If so, do they need to be included as part of the email or can I delete them?

Is there an attachment? If so, have I included it?

If there is an attachment, does the person I am sending it to have the right software to be able to read it?

Morning tea

Session 2 – Scanning paper records to digital records

What is scanning?

• A digital copy made of a physical record, such as a paper file or photograph

• The process is also known as digitising, digital reformatting, and imaging

• Equipment used includes flat-bed scanners, sheet-feed scanner and digital cameras

Reasons for scanning

Organisations scan records for both records management and archival purposes:

– In the course of business– To improve access to records– To provide backup copies as security– To preserve the original records– To save physical storage space (depends on

the organisation being able to dispose of paper originals)

Plan before you scan!

Before starting a scanning project, it is very important to ask questions such as:

• What records will you be scanning?• Why are you scanning them?• How well-organised are the records?• What hardware and software will be used?• What types of files will be generated?• What software will be used to store and manage the

images?• What quality assurance mechanisms will be in place?• How will the files be stored? Backup very important

Technical standards

• The proposed use of the digital file will determine the technical standards you need

• Technical standards need to be established at the start in order to get the results you want

Format the file type - RAW, JPEG, TIFF, PDF, PNG

Resolution the amount of detail a picture holds, often counted in dpi or dots per inch

Compression the reduction of the size of an image file for storage purposes

Bit depth the maximum layers of brightness available in an image - 2-bit, 4-bit

Equipment

• Computers• Scanners• Cameras• Imaging software

Managing your digital files

• Like all records, digital files need to be managed so they can be found, retrieved and used over time

• Files should be ideally captured into a system (an image or contents management system) along with the necessary metadata

• Storage of digital files and backup copies• Preservation of files (migration, refreshing)

Managing your digital files

• Metadata• Content management software for metadata

(that ‘talks’ to the database housing the images)

• Disposing of original records

Project done in-house Project outsourced

Original records are always available and are controlled by the organization.

Original records are unavailable to the organisation for a period of time.

Requires purchase (or leasing) of equipment which, if the project is a one-off, may be difficult to justify.

Generally requires payment for the cost of scanning, not separate payment for equipment or staffing.

Requires specifically skilled staff. Trained operators can be expected.

Organisation pays for costs associated with technical infrastructure problems.

Quality control still needs to be carried out by the organization, independent of vendor quality processes.

Greater controls on the security of the record.

Vendor pays for costs associated with technology problems that occur during the scanning process.

Skills and quality assurance maintained in house.

Involves physical transportation and handling protocols and processes for moving to vendor premises.

Digitisation vs micrographicsDigitisation

Advantages Disadvantages

Highly accessible Totally dependent on electronic systems

Software and hardware becoming cheaper

If not well organised, images can be hard to find

Copies can be made quickly and cheaply

Cost required to preserve files can cancel out savings due to extra physical space

Images can be re-used for various purposes

Digital storage media do not last a long time

Digitisation vs micrographicsMicrographics

Advantages Disadvantages

Long-established and proven technology

Harder to find information

Can survive a long time when processed and stored well

Can only be used at one time in one location

Not dependent on electricity Technology falling out of use

Additional set of copies = additional cost

A 10-step process for scanning projects

1. Why?2. What?3. Technical Specifications4. Plan (who, how much?)5. Prepare6. Image capture7. Metadata capture8. Quality control9. Storage, preservation, backup10. Access

1.Objectives• Preserve the German records collection

within Samoa. • Digitize records of German Administration

1900 -1914• Produce and deliver copies for the Federal

Republic of Germany.

• Cooperation Agreement• Funds• Trainings• Equipments

1. Federal Republic of Germany• Digitization Equipments• Technical Advisors/Trainers

2. Ministry of Education, Sports and Culture• Staffing • Facilities/Utilities

•Item listing•Cleaning•Folio numbering•Dis-binding•Re-housing/re-boxing•Paper ironing (if required)•Paper mending (if required)

•Atiz model B copying system•2 canon 5D Cameras•2 50mm prime lens with filters•2 35mm prime lens with filters•Dell graphic PC•Eizo Graphic monitor•External hard drives (1tb)•UPS power conditioner

•Familiarizing with required software.•Focus to meet digitization/scanning as required by Archives NZ•Where Samoa stand from the regions digitization/scanning technical standards?•Areas needed to be further developed.

•Dealing with unplanned circumstances.•The advantages of the project.•Capacity building of employees

Lunch

Thank you!

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