Digitisation is
making more museum, library and archive collections accessible
across the internet. MLA and DPC are working with a range of
national partners to ensure that the knowledge held in those
institutions can be accessed wherever and whenever it is
needed. Digitisation means that objects and information in
different places can be brought together to create virtual
collections, matched to the particular needs of the searcher.
But a new survey shows that these digitised collections may be
at significant risk of being lost to future generations if the
issue of digital preservation is not
addressed.
The survey, which will inform the
development of a national digitisation strategy, looked at
non-national museums, libraries and archives in two English
regions - the North East and West Midlands - to discover how
well prepared they are to deal with the problems of keeping
digital material in the long term. The results show that there
is a significant commitment to digitisation, with over 80
digitisation projects currently in place. However, the survey
highlighted a major concern that 90 percent of the projects
were externally funded and therefore took no account of the
need to provide the long term, sustainable support needed to
preserve and protect public access to the digital
collections.
Some key findings
are:
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The organisations
surveyed expressed a need for help and advice on a range
of digital preservation issues. |
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Awareness raising on
the whole issue of digital preservation is
needed. |
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The bulk of activity
covered by the survey has been the digitisation of
existing collections rather than in tackling the issues
raised by born-digital material.
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Long-term management
of digital material needs to be more firmly embedded in
corporate thinking and planning.
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Chris Batt, Chief Executive of MLA,
said: "Digitisation of collections has significantly improved
public access. We wanted to know how museums, libraries and
archives were coping with the challenges posed by their
increased responsibility for sustaining digital materials.
This report will help us all to develop more effective
policies for management of the collections that define the
knowledge sector and will assist us in lobbying for adequate
funding to secure for the future the nation's investment in
digital resources."
Lynne Brindley, Chief Executive of
the British Library and Chair of the DPC said: "This survey is
key in helping us to build an overall picture of the
challenges UK institutions face in managing their digital
resources. The results of the survey serve as a wake up call
to all institutions. The current investment in digitisation
will be wasted if we cannot provide sustainable levels of
access for the long term. The survey provides valuable
evidence for the importance of the Digital Preservation
Coalition and the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council
working together to develop a national policy that will ensure
that digital preservation is embedded in funding streams as we
move towards a fully digital economy and e-society." The
report is available on the MLA website here.
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