Friday, March 07, 2008

Digital Preservation Matters - 07 March 2008


National Archives Chooses Digital Vision to Automate Film and Video Restoration. Press Release. March 5, 2008.

NARA has selected Digital Vision to digitize and restore some of their 700,000 titles, in order to preserve them and make them available for public access. The solution, which requires minimal operator intervention, includes high-speed, 4K and 2K scanning and telecine systems. Both the film and video footage will be color corrected, along with sound normalizing and scratch/dust removal.


Scoping study for a registry of electronic journals that indicates where they are archived. JISC. 14 January 2008. [pdf]

A study to determine the scope and feasibility of a registry for archived e-journals. There is no single view of what constitutes a registry. Many feel it should be a place where the information is gathered, audited, then made available to local databases. Some ask why they are paying for the services when others also benefit without paying. A registry should contain the information on where an item is and how to access it. The study identified ten basic characteristics of digital preservation repositories:

  1. The repository commits to ongoing maintenance of digital objects for their communities.
  2. Demonstrates organizational ability to fulfill its commitment.
  3. Acquires and maintains contractual and legal rights and fulfills responsibilities.
  4. Has an effective and efficient policy framework.
  5. Acquires / ingests digital objects based on criteria that fit its commitments and capabilities.
  6. Maintains/ensures the integrity, authenticity and usability of digital objects over time.
  7. Creates and maintains preservation metadata about creation, maintenance, and actions taken.
  8. Fulfills dissemination requirements.
  9. Has a strategic program for preservation planning and action.
  10. Has technical infrastructure to adequately maintenance its digital objects


New Digital Preservation Newsletter from the Library of Congress. Press Release. March 3, 2008.

The Library of Congress has started a digital preservation newsletter. The March edition includes information on state partnerships, digital video reformatting, preservation tips, and NDIIPP information.


Publishers Phase Out Piracy Protection on Audio Books. Brad Stone. The New York Times. March 3, 2008.

Some of the largest publishers are removing the Digital Rights Management protections on audio books. This will allow the files to be copied to different devices and will allow retailers to sell content that will work on all digital devices. Random House was the first to move away from DRM and others appear to be following.

No comments: