While the Sun Shines: Assessing Born-Digital Holdings

Before It’s Too Late

Assessment Overview

• Quantitative Assessment:

– Not technical, but potentially time-consuming

– Informs an electronic records program

• Qualitative Assessment:

– Slightly more technical, but potentially very powerful

– Requires some kind of formal born digital plan

Quantitative Assessment

1. Will every box be opened?

2. How will extent be measured?

3. How will content be identified and categorized?

Quantitative Assessment

1. Will every box be opened? Let’s hope not

2. How will extent be measured? BYTES

3. How will content be identified and categorized?

1. Media type

2. Disk label

3. Other administrative info

Inventory

Coll. Name Coll. # Media Type

Label Info Box/Folder

Fiona Pitt-KethleyPapers

2457 3.5 inch disk

ANTHOLOGY & PAN BOOK EXTRA

Fiona Pitt-KethleyPapers

2457 3 inch compact floppy

START OF DAY

Craig Thomas Papers

11749 DVD Senator Craig Thomas Portraits Senate Photographic Services 202-224-6000

Box 26

Craig Thomas Papers

11749 CD Afghanistan & Iraq Video march 2006 CT visit

Box 24

Inventory Challenges

• Digital media not noticed or well-documented

• If documented, legacy media not well-described in archival management systems

• Distinguishing between ‘born-digital’ and ‘audio/video’

Inventory Challenges

Inventory Challenges

• “Digital,” “Electronic,” “Digitized,”

• “Disk,” “Disc,” “Diskette,” “Floppy,” “Floppies”

• “Computer-mediated”

• Format- or tech-specific: “doc,” “pdf,” “email,” “website,” “Microsoft,” “Mac”

• “CD,” “DVD”, “CD-ROM”, “CD-R,” “DVD-R,” “DVD+R,” “DVD-RW,” “Compact Disk”

Inventory Challenges

• A/V ≠ CD and DVD ≠ Born Digital (maybe)

– Most all of today’s A/V is born digital

– Playable DVD/CD vs. Data Disks

– Ripping vs. File Transfer

Why Do This?

• Documenting media types present helps determine hardware requirements

• Documenting and totaling media types helps determine storage requirements (Extent)

• Lays the groundwork for working with born-digital materials, which:

• Enables qualitative assessment

Qualitative Assessment

• Condition (Preservation)

• Physical Access (Arrangement)

• Intellectual Access (Description)

• Research Value

• Other Value

** Assumes some kind of formal accessioning plan for born digital material.

Assessing Condition

Software Used: DROID (Digital Record Object Identification)

Assessing Condition

Physical Access (Arrangement)

Software Used: Karen’s Directory Printer

Software Used: TreeSize

Intellectual Access (Description)

Software Used: Quick View Plus (not free)

Research Value

• Most collections are hybrid

• Let the analog inform the digital

“Other Value”

I am probably out of time

Ben Goldman

Digital Records Archivist

Penn State University

goldman@psu.edu