Digital Archiving and Preservation

Topics covered include media refreshment, conversion to neutral formats vs. emulation to retain original format, migration, and electronic records repository construction and administration. Student teams carry out projects based on processing and designing preservation plans for collections from campus and other local archives and from the School's own digital production, using a DSpace-based archival repository and laboratory facilities to support capture of digital materials from older technologies. Existing practices in the information technology field, including digital forensic techniques for file capture, and their appropriateness to archival requirements are discussed and used. Special attention is paid to the issues of authenticity and reauthentication in the long-term preservation of electronic records. Three lecture hours a week for one semester. Objectives for this course include:

1) What digital archiving is, anyway: its history and its relation to the history of technology

2) How to use a digital records repository

3) Problems of structuring a logical digital records repository

4) Requirements for preserving digital objects with credible authenticity

5) How to capture, describe, structure, and maintain a digital fonds.

6) How to provide access to permanent digital records while keeping them secure