A Multiple Case Study Analysis of Digital Preservation Techniques across Government, Private, and Public Service Organizations

The process of record keeping has evolved through time. As our technology advances, so does our ability to manage information. We have progressed from paper-based records to new digital techniques and formats to store records. However, digital storage is not the Holy Grail answer to preservation and storage problems. Digital storage is confounded by multiple problems, also. Some of these problems are, but not limited to, lack of standardization and legal guidance, proprietary formats, and the fragility of the digital medium. This research examines several organizations that are deeply involved in digital preservation and tries to identify common practices and problems across the industry

The Ghost in the Machine: Traditional Archival Practice in the Design of Digital Repositories for Long-Term Preservation

This research paper explores the ways in which traditional paper-based archival principles and practices, based on the requirements of a knowledge system built on physical forms (papyrus, parchment, paper), are being applied to the development of repositories designed explicitly for the long-term preservation of digital materials. Though debate remains active, the archival community has gradually coalesced around a set of high-level principles and practices generally agreed as representative of the core values of archival activity: the sanctity of evidence; the preservation imperative; the primacy of the record; respect des fonds, original order and provenance; and hierarchy in records and their collective description. These traditional archival principles and practices are defined, then translated into digital repository architecture designs through an analysis of the Open Archival Information Systems reference model (OAIS). Areas of active research on this subject are examined in a set of case studies