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1 – 10 of over 6000Meg Bellinger, Pam Kircher, Taylor Surface and Leah Houser
On August 26, 1971, OCLC introduced the online union catalog and shared cataloging system. During the 1970s, OCLC focused its efforts on creating and expanding the online…
Abstract
On August 26, 1971, OCLC introduced the online union catalog and shared cataloging system. During the 1970s, OCLC focused its efforts on creating and expanding the online cataloging system and telecommunications network. It added an online interlibrary loan system in 1979. In the 1980s, OCLC began adapting distributed computing and microcomputing technologies as its product and service lines expanded to some 60 offerings. The organization also began looking at ways to move beyond bibliography by furnishing information not only to library staffs, but also to library patrons. In the 1990s, OCLC launched a new core business in reference services. (Smith, 1998, pp. 251–252). Now, in the 21st century, OCLC is introducing tools, services and infrastructure to manage the life cycle of digital content in libraries.
Parvaneh Westerlund, Ingemar Andersson, Tero Päivärinta and Jörgen Nilsson
This paper aims to automate pre-ingest workflow for preserving digital content, such as records, through middleware that integrates potentially many information systems with…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to automate pre-ingest workflow for preserving digital content, such as records, through middleware that integrates potentially many information systems with potentially several alternative digital preservation services.
Design/methodology/approach
This design research approach resulted in a design for model- and component-based software for such workflow. A proof-of-concept prototype was implemented and demonstrated in context of a European research project, ForgetIT.
Findings
The study identifies design issues of automated pre-ingest for digital preservation while using middleware as a design choice for this purpose. The resulting model and solution suggest functionalities and interaction patterns based on open interface protocols between the source systems of digital content, middleware and digital preservation services. The resulting workflow automates the tasks of fetching digital objects from the source system with metadata extraction, preservation preparation and transfer to a selected preservation service. The proof-of-concept verified that the suggested model for pre-ingest workflow and the suggested component architecture was technologically implementable. Future research and development needs to include new solutions to support context-aware preservation management with increased support for configuring submission agreements as a basis for dynamic automation of pre-ingest and more automated error handling.
Originality/value
The paper addresses design issues for middleware as a design choice to support automated pre-ingest in digital preservation. The suggested middleware architecture supports many-to-many relationships between the source information systems and digital preservation services through open interface protocols, thus enabling dynamic digital preservation solutions for records management.
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Sara Mannheimer and Conor Cote
For libraries with limited resources, digital preservation can seem like a daunting responsibility. Forming partnerships can help build collective knowledge and maximize combined…
Abstract
Purpose
For libraries with limited resources, digital preservation can seem like a daunting responsibility. Forming partnerships can help build collective knowledge and maximize combined resources to achieve digital preservation goals. This paper aims to provide guidance to help libraries with limited resources achieve digital preservation goals by forming partnerships to build collective knowledge and maximize combined resources.
Design/methodology/approach
In 2015, librarians from four Montana institutions formed the Digital Preservation Working Group (DPWG), a collaboration to increase digital preservation efforts statewide. The group’s immediate goals were to promote digital preservation best-practices at each individual institution, and to learn about and support each other’s work. The group’s long-term goal was to implement a shared digital preservation service that would fill gaps in existing digital preservation efforts.
Findings
Beyond the cost savings gained by sharing a digital preservation service, the members of DPWG benefitted from shared knowledge and expertise gained during the partnership. The group also functioned as a sounding board as each institution built its digital preservation program, and it became a system of support when challenges arose.
Practical/implications
This paper proposes a five-point plan for creating digital preservation partnerships: cultivate a foundation of knowledge and identify a shared vision; assess the current digital preservation landscape at each institution; advocate for the value of digital preservation activities; implement shared digital preservation services; and sustain group activities and establish structures for ongoing support.
Originality/value
The activities of DPWG provide a model for institutions seeking to collaborate to meet digital preservation challenges. This paper shows that by implementing a structured plan, institutions can build and sustain digital preservation partnerships, thus positioning themselves to achieve digital preservation success.
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To discuss the issues and challenges of digital preservation facing institutional repositories and to illustrate the Joint Information Systems Committee's (JISC) view on…
Abstract
Purpose
To discuss the issues and challenges of digital preservation facing institutional repositories and to illustrate the Joint Information Systems Committee's (JISC) view on institutional repositories and its key initiatives in helping UK institutions address these issues.
Design/methodology/approach
A combination of published work and JISC documents (public facing or internal) were used as reference material.
Findings
Digital preservation is a complex process and there are still many unsolved issues which make it a challenging task for institutional repositories. However, the wide deployment of institutional repositories also provides new opportunities for digital preservation. Much could be done to consider digital preservation from the outset, to involve the authors and to embed digital preservation into repository workflow, which will ease the later preservation tasks.
Research limitations/implications
A number of ongoing JISC‐funded projects are briefly reported which explore different models for the provision of digital preservation services for institutional repositories. These models may be a way forward to tackle collectively the issue of long‐term preservation within the setting of institutional repositories. Depending on the outcomes of the projects, further investigation and implementation could be undertaken to test the models.
Practical implications
This paper will help the reader to gain a better understanding of the issues related to digital preservation in general and how JISC's work has helped to tackle these issues.
Originality/value
This paper clearly states JISC's view on, and future plan for, digital repositories. This is of value to the UK educational community as JISC works on its behalf and responds to its needs.
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This paper aims to describe the Florida Digital Archive (FDA), a long‐term preservation repository for the use of the public university system of Florida, and the DAITSS…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to describe the Florida Digital Archive (FDA), a long‐term preservation repository for the use of the public university system of Florida, and the DAITSS preservation repository application used by the FDA. It seeks to explain requirements that shaped DAITSS design, outline functions of the current software, and describe how DAITSS is being rearchitected as a series of Web Services (DAITSS 2). It also endeavours to place the FDA and DAITSS in the context of various models for implementing digital preservation functions.
Design/methodology/approach
This is a case study of one model of digital preservation implementation that includes some comparison with examples of other models. The preservation protocol implemented by DAITSS combines bit‐level preservation, format normalization, and forward format migration; extensive preservation and format‐specific metadata are supported, and authenticity of content is maintained through application design and a complete record of digital provenance.
Findings
The formal OAIS model has much to offer, and DAITSS could be part of a preservation solution for large academic/research libraries and for consortia who can share central computing facilities and staff.
Practical implications
When DAITSS 2 is completed and implemented by the Florida Digital Archive, the code will be released for use under an open source license. Institutions, consortia and third party service providers looking for a more complete preservation solution than simple replication can consider using DAITSS 2 as their digital preservation repository application.
Originality/value
There are very few preservation repository applications that do nothing but digital preservation, do it well, and formally implement the OAIS model. The Florida Digital Archive's DAITSS was the first of its kind in the USA. DAITSS 2 will conform to the same requirements as DAITSS and will retain the same functionality, but it will be easier to implement and manage in production, and easier to maintain and enhance.
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Krystyna K. Matusiak, Allison Tyler, Catherine Newton and Padma Polepeddi
The purpose of this paper is to examine affordable access and digital preservation solutions for digital collections developed by under-resourced small- and mid-sized cultural…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine affordable access and digital preservation solutions for digital collections developed by under-resourced small- and mid-sized cultural heritage organizations.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper presents a case study of Jeffco Stories, a collection of digitized oral histories created by the Jefferson County Public Library in Colorado.
Findings
This paper describes how the Jefferson County Public Library undertook a migration project of its oral history digital collection into an open-access platform, Omeka, and selected DuraCloud as a hosted digital preservation service.
Research limitations/implications
As a case study, this paper is limited to one institution’s experience with selecting access and digital preservation solutions.
Practical/implications
This paper is relevant to librarians and archivists who are exploring access and preservation solutions for digital collections and to those who are considering migrating to open-access content management systems and cloud-based digital preservation solutions.
Originality/value
This paper presents a case of a public library and the challenges in finding affordable access and digital preservation solutions for small digital collections.
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The long‐term access to and preservation of research collections in digital form is an issue of increasing concern to research libraries around the world. This article provides an…
Abstract
The long‐term access to and preservation of research collections in digital form is an issue of increasing concern to research libraries around the world. This article provides an overview of selected issues, projects and initiatives in digital preservation in the UK. These include the Joint Information Systems Committee/National Preservation Office research studies, the CEDARS project, the National Electronic Site Licensing Initiative (NESLI), legal deposit of electronic publications, the preservation management of digital materials handbook, and the Arts and Humanities Data Service. It concludes with details of the proposed Digital Preservation Coalition, which aims to develop a UK digital preservation agenda within an international context.
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Tyler O. Walters and Katherine Skinner
This paper aims to examine the emerging field of digital preservation and its economics. It seeks to consider in detail the cooperative model and the path it provides toward…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to examine the emerging field of digital preservation and its economics. It seeks to consider in detail the cooperative model and the path it provides toward sustainability as well as how it fosters participation by cultural memory organizations and their administrators, who are concerned about what digital preservation will ultimately cost and who will pay.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors cast light on the decisions that administrators of cultural memory organizations are making on a daily basis – namely, to preserve or not to preserve their digital collections. They assert that either way, a decision is being made, costs are incurred, and consequences are being levied. The authors begin by exploring the costs incurred by cultural memory organizations if they do not quickly establish digital preservation programs for their digital assets. They move then to look to the digital preservation field's preliminary findings regarding the costs of preserving digital assets and who should ideally subsidize this investment.
Findings
The authors describe one economically sustainable digital preservation model in practice, the MetaArchive Cooperative, a distributed digital preservation network that has been in operation since 2004. The MetaArchive has built its economic sustainability model and has experienced successes with it for over five years.
Originality/value
There are very few studies or articles in the literature that review studies on the economics of digital preservation and apply them to digital preservation initiatives in action. This article provides that application and further articulates why cultural memory organizations should invest themselves and learn how to provide for the preservation of their own digital collections.
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Vasily Bunakov, Catherine Jones, Brian Matthews and Michael Wilson
The purpose of this paper is to suggest an approach to data value considerations that is related to the generalized notion of authenticity and can be applied to the design of…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to suggest an approach to data value considerations that is related to the generalized notion of authenticity and can be applied to the design of preservation policies. There has been considerable progress in the scalable architectures for policy-driven digital collection preservation as well as in modeling preservation costs. However, modeling the value of both digital artifacts and collections seems a more elusive topic that has yet to find a proper methodology and means of expression.
Design/methodology/approach
A top-down conceptual analysis was developed and the principles of information technology service management and quality management were applied to the domain of digital preservation. Then, in a bottom-up analysis, the various notions of authenticity in digital preservation projects, reference models and conceptual papers were reviewed.
Findings
The top-down and bottom-up analyses have a meeting point, establishing a close relation between the concepts of data authenticity and data value.
Originality/value
The generalized understanding of authenticity can support the design of sensible preservation policies and their application to the formation and long-term maintenance of digital collections.
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Shaun Trujillo, Meghan Bergin, Margaret Jessup, Johanna Radding and Sarah Walden McGowan
This work aims to provide a report on adopting a consortial model of collaboration toward understanding digital preservation practice.
Abstract
Purpose
This work aims to provide a report on adopting a consortial model of collaboration toward understanding digital preservation practice.
Design/methodology/approach
This work provides a case study detailing the work and outcomes of a digital preservation pilot project undertaken by the Five College Libraries between 2014 and 2015.
Findings
Digital preservation is a broad endeavor and rapidly developing facet of digital collections and institutional repositories; yet, it is often an area that is not fully understood or implemented by many libraries and archives, largely because institutions lack the necessary resources to do it alone. Working across institutional lines provides a possible solution to overcoming resource limitations and general challenges for pursuing robust digital preservation programs.
Research limitations/implications
Findings reported in this work are based on a limited-scope pilot project. Several questions laid out during the pilot remain unanswered at its close.
Originality/value
This paper provides insight into an experimental process rarely reported in library and information science literature. The goal of the paper is to provide a reference point for institutions pursuing a consortial approach to the challenges of applied digital preservation practice.
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