Digital Preservation: How to Preserve Digital Assets

1. Digital Preservation: How to Preserve Digital Assets 2009 Instructor: Gayle Palmer, palmerg@oclc.org An Infopeople Workshop, Spring 2009

2. This Workshop Is Brought to Youby the Infopeople Project Infopeople is a federally-funded grant project supported by the California State Library. It provides a wide variety of training to California libraries. Infopeople workshops are offered around the state and are open registration on a first-come, first-served basis. For a complete list of workshops, and for other information about the project, go to the Infopeople website at infopeople.org.

3. Agenda • What is digital preservation? • Why do digital archiving? • How do I take action to reduce risks? • What tools do I need? • How do I plan for and fund digital preservation? • Immediate actions Digital Preservation Resources Organization Technology

4. What is digital data? • Digital Object: Any resource that can be stored or manipulated by a computer • Digitized Resources: Resources that have been digitized from an analog source • Born Digital: Any resource that was created digitally and will be managed and preserved digitally

5. What is digital preservation? • Digital Preservation encompasses a broad range of activities designed to extend the usable life of machine-readable computer files and protect them from media failure, physical loss, and obsolescence.

6. Digital preservation / changing needs Use Computer Device(s) Deliver Application Operating System Store Data

7. Why do digital archiving? Section 1

8. Who needs to access content? • Access: • Content management for current user access • Archive: • Content management for long-term access and preservation Digital archive

9. Digital collections lifecycle Assess users’ needs and collections’ conditions Convert your materials to digital collections and create metadata Digital archive Organize and store your digitalcollections Expose your digital collections while providing Web access

10. What are your digital collections? • How do you get digital items? • Are digital resources included in the collection development policy?

11. Who are your users? • How do you know your key users? • When you consider preserving digital collections do you imagine the same users?

12. Build for your users • What criteria is used in your organization for preserving digital collections? • Does this relate to the key users?

13. How do we decide what to save? • Examples from personal life

14. Why have a preservation strategy? • Organizations need a preservation strategy, because……digital collections come under threat from technical and organizational reasons.

15. Who is doing preservation? Research Libraries Government Archives Historical Societies Individual Collectors California Digital Library OCLC, Inc.

16. Initial priorities for digital preservation: • ensure long-term access to digital information • develop a robust and reliable digital preservation repository • design and develop tools, guidelines, and best practices • Audience is the UC libraries

17. How do you preserve digital formats? Digital Preservation Resources Technology Organization

18. Routine access issues • Users request reprints • Servers are replaced • Collection is expanded • An image file is corrupted • Software is upgraded • A hard disk fails… what happened to those master files?

19. Technical threats • Files are obsolete • Files or software damaged • Types and flavors of files • Human error

20. Changes to storage media

21. What preservation actions are needed? • Cornell Digital Preservation Management site • 3. Obsolescence & Physical Threats

22. Organizational risk to access • People and policies • Lack of awareness • Failure of funding • Lack of policies • Staff training

23. Selection for preservation • Setting priorities: • Organization plans • Collection priorities • Legal requirements

24. Seven things to mitigate risk • establish policies • establish priorities • establish and document roles • document workflow procedures • establish quality control process • document rights management • address organizational resistance

25. Planning to reduce risk • Four more things: • pursue – high impact opportunities • partner – to gain expertise • develop – work with internal resources • disregard – take no action

26. What tools do we need for preservation? Digital Preservation

27. Let’s discuss search & retrieval • Discovery • Delivery • Precision • Granularity • Provide access options

28. Software & data management Does your digital management software support your digital archive work? Does it help you with preservation?

29. Your preservation software should • Create, manage and preserve digital resources • Support workflow, flexibility • Make it easy to import and export data and digital objects

30. Digital repository tools require • Significant investment for • collection curation • tools • access • Integrate with current network Resources Organization Technology

31. Archive software requirements • Create, maintain file identity • Read properties of digital objects • Maintain account access • Assign persistent identifier • Perform integrity check • Assure authenticity • Review provenance

32. Backup vs. archiving • What are back up routines? • What is data archiving? • How do they differ? System storage

33. Web Integrated tools Web user Worldcat.org Google, Yahoo Users Digital collections web site User delivery DVD, Cell, Blackberry Digital collection DB Web Development Tools Metadata for interoperability Digital Archive Network enterprise foundation Data backup

34. Digital repository models • OAIS – our vocabulary for structure, roles, terminology (ISO 14721) … when did you start using the term “ingest”? • Trusted Digital Repositories (TDR) (CRL implementing) • Enabling preservation actions • Registries of data formats: Pronom, GDFR • Data format verification tools: JHOVE, DROID • Metadata elements – PREMIS v2.0 April 2008

35. Descriptive Info. AIP Open Archival Information System Preservation Planning P R O D U C E R C O N S U M E R Data Management queries result sets SIP Ingest Access orders Archival Storage DIP Administration MANAGEMENT SIP = Submission Information Package AIP = Archival Information Package DIP = Dissemination Information Package

36. Trusted Digital Repository A Trusted Digital Repository is defined as a repository whose mission is to provide reliable, long-term access to managed digital resources, now and in the future. Trusted Digital Repositories: Attributes and Responsibilities, May 2002 report from RLG/OCLC

37. Preserving common collections • National library of the Netherlands, E-Depot (journals) • LOCKSS (journals) • Portico (journals) • CLOCKSS (journals) • Hathi Trust (books)

38. Preserving unique, local collections • DuraSpace (service under development) • Extends DSpace & Fedora content management systems • Ex Libris Rosetta (software) • MetaArchive Cooperative (LOCKSS private networks) • OCLC Digital Archive (service)

39. Secure, managed storage • Digital Archive provides … • Systems management • Physical security • Data security • Data backups • Disaster recovery • ISO 9001 Certification OCLC Digital Archive

40. Outsource Options • Are there any Trusted Digital Repositories? • Not yet, but active players • Online Archive of California • OCLC Digital Archive Service • Washington State Digital Archive • Cornell Digital Repository

41. How do I plan for and fund digital preservation?

42. Digital preservation Digital resources Technology Organization

43. Operational preservation questions • How will you store & maintain for 5, 10, 50 years? • When will you know to take preservation actions? • What is in your collection? • Where have you put them?

44. Organizational Planning • Tasks and responsibilities • Create policy framework • Identify users • Identify digital collections to be preserved • Establish planning framework • Identify functions and roles

45. Digital Program Costs – JISC study Estimates from UK National Data Centres Acquisition & Ingest ~42% Archival Storage ~23% & Preservation Access ~35% Planning and funding

46. Strategy Program Project 1 Project 2 Project 3 Project 4 Clear action at all stages Vision development and user assessment Vision Strategy and program development Funding Preserving precious resources Implementing digital initiatives Ongoing management

47. Funding Strategies • How do I do make the case for funding a digital preservation pilot project?

48. Blue Ribbon Task Force onSustainable Digital Preservation and Access • Preliminary lessons learned • “Sell” outcomes • Avoid discounting benefits • It’s hard to separate costs • Diversify funding • Non-monetary incentives • Consider many options when choosing economic model

49. Funding a pilot project Write a case statement • Brief description of a project idea • List potential funders or partners • Read out loud

50. Plan for funding a pilot • Case statement for internal funding • Present to board or department head • Justify cost-benefit to organization • Case statement for external funding • Present to foundation or grants funder • Justify cost-benefit to community