Community Archives: The Shaping of Memory
Collective memory
Community Archives is part of a series called Principles and Practices in Records Management and Archives. The series aims to augment the body of professional knowledge and understanding currently available. Each book in the series offers a detailed overview of a specific topic, in this case community archives. This book contains 14 essays, which offer an array of viewpoints from a variety of global contributors (academics, librarians, archivists, etc.) on the interrelationships between archives and communities. The contributors examine the ways in which records reveal community identity and collective memory. The book is split into five sections: case studies in community archives; community and non-traditional recordkeeping; record loss, destruction and recovery; online communities; and, practical suggestions for building a community archive. Numerous themes are examined: the human need for community, recording making, the construction of communities, community identity, empowerment of marginal communities, social justice, and reinforcement of memory. It assesses the recent advances in technology that can contribute to the creation of new virtual communities. The book also discusses the role of archivists in supporting communities and their relationship to community records because the contributors contend that the archivist has a significant role to play in the process of building communities archives.
Bastian, Jeannette
Alexande, Ben
Facet
2009
Polk, Victoria
Book
ISBN: 1856046397
What Is A Data Archive And What Should The Information Specialist know about Managing Logically Maintained Numeric Data Files?
Archives
This journal provides information about what an archive is, in specific, numerical data. It explains why numeric data files are important, for things like statistic and the importance of having a data file where to reference things. Local databases should be acquired and maintained because some information is only available in computerized form and because information sometimes must be in digitized form to be retrieved or manipulated efficiently. Due to a lack of indexes, directories, or union lists of data files, particularly those that are not online, the process of identifying and locating data files is difficult. The Guide to Resources and Services, which gives descriptions of over 20,000 files, is one of the most useful directories. Format of the data file to be bought depends on the computer equipment at the local institution and the software available there. Decisions have to be made regarding the support level to be offered to users of the computerized information. Management of the data archives requires administrative skills as well as knowledge of data files and their applications. There is no standard budget for setting up and maintaining an archive of numeric data as the scope and structure of every organization varies.
Anne Gerken
ProQuest
August 1988
Antonella Federici
Journal
Archives, Documentation, and Institutions of Social Memory: Essays from the Sawyer Seminar
Archives
The Advanced Studies Center of the International Institute of the University of Michigan held a year-long Sawyer Seminar from 2000-2001 to investigate the complicated relationships between archives, forms of documentation, and societies. The program had 100 presentations over 28 sessions with representation from 15 different countries. The focus of the seminar was the role of archives in the production of knowledge. The book is divided into five sections. The first section deals with archives themselves. How does one define an archive? The second section looks at how archives are used in the production of knowledge. The third section is about social memory. These articles explore how archives create knowledge about broader social processes and activities that can be used to explore the past, such as how archives can deliberately limit, shape, or structure certain kinds of social understanding. The fourth section examines archives and political cultures, specifically Canada, the Caribbean, Western Europe, African, and European Colonial Archives. Essays cover the challenge of recovering “memory” in areas of colonialism and postcolonialism, revolutionary events, and evolving stable states. In contrast to section four, the last section covers archives and social understanding in states undergoing rapid transition, such as China, Postwar Japan, Postwar Greece, Russia, Ukraine, and the Balkins. The essays examine the relationship between state archives and governments, and they look at how politics affects archives.
Blouin Jr., Francis
Rosenberg, William R
University of Michigan Press
2006
Polk, Victoria
Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 license
Book
ISBN-13: 978-0472032709
ISBN-10: 0472032704
Digital Curation/Digital Archiving: A View from the National Archives of Australia
Archives
This article discusses the importance of differentiating between the terms digital archiving and digital curation and explains how the obfuscation of these phrases can limit the necessary resources that must be given to digital archiving practices. Cunningham expresses a frustration with the way that many use digital archiving and curation interchangeably. According to Cunningham, digital curation is a term that is used to connect different professions relating to the collection or preservation of digital information. These can include data management, digital librarianship, and digital archiving. However, the constant use of this umbrella term undermines the important differences between the fields of work. Digital libraries and museums focus on the acquiring and displaying of digital texts. Whereas, digital archives prioritize the collection of information, providing the context of this information, and documenting the relationships between the material in the collection. Because of these priorities, digital archivists must intervene in the “creation and management” of digital files, rather than just accumulating existing information. Cunningham uses the National Archives of Australia (NAA) to demonstrate the level of intervention that is necessary. The NAA utilized assistance from the Australian government to establish standards for digital archives and provided long-term training for existing archivists in using emerging computer technologies. These all functioned to create a more efficient and effective archiving system.
Cunningham, Adrian
2008
Rahman, Sabiha
Journal Article
Digital Curation/Digital Archiving: A View from the National Archives of Australia
Archives
Within his article “Digital Curation/Digital Archiving: A View from the National Archives of Australia,” Adrian Cunningham tackles the true definition of the term digital archive. Bringing in a perspective from the National Archives of Australia (NAA), Cunningham shares his hands-on experience of working as an archivist. There are three main messages Cunningham aims to get across, which are: the difference between curation and archiving, the difference between digital archives and digital libraries/museum, and the need for archival intervention.
Cunningham, Adrian
2008
Natasha Furness
English
Journal
Keeping Archives
Archives
This book provides a comprehensive manual that covers key areas of archiving. Its audience is that of the novice and student archivist. In addition to it textbook format, the material in the book examines the role of the archival profession in the electronic records environment. The first four chapters focus on how to get started with archives. The chapters concentrate on the definition of archives, organization and storage issues, and preservation. They provide practical knowledge on developing frameworks for the establishment of an archive. The next six chapters examine how to manage archives. The chapters explain how to decide what one wants, how to get it, once one obtains it, and finally how to manage it. It looks at appraisal and disposal, acquisition, accessioning, arrangement, documentation programs, and using computers (the tasks for which they can be used). The four chapters in section three discuss promoting archives, which includes public access, security, privacy, confidentiality, cultural sensitivity, and copyright. The last four chapters discuss how to manage non-textual items. Digital recordkeeping is described. The chapters provide guidance on how to use archival principles, process, and services for digital records, maps, objects, sound recordings, moving images, and photographs.
Ellis, Judith
Bettington, Jackie
Eberhard, Kim
Loo, Rowena
Smith, Clive
Australian Society of Archivists
2008
Polk, Victoria
Book
ISBN: 1875589155
978-1875589159
Defining "born digital": an essay
Archives
Erway provides a succinctly defined list of fundamental tasks and issues to consider when creating and preserving digital collections. Born-digital resources are simply “items created and managed in digital form.” Erway begins his essay by describing nine basic types of born-digital items including documents, images, data sets and digital media. He accompanies each description with recommended methods for preservation, noting that some types, such as documents, may require emulating the original software that created the document. Many factors affect born-digital preservation, such as whether or not the document was created with proprietary software, the hardware and operating system are obsolescent, or how the document might be used in the future.
Erway discusses key issues affecting the preservation of born-digital items by assessing the inherent risks and detailing seven fundamental archival challenges. A key issue, such as “bit rot” adds to the complexity of adapting archival standards to digital collections. Standard archival principles, including provenance, are jeopardized by loss or corruption of digital data or by the proprietary nature of some software. Documents protected by such software may not be able to provide contextual information that might be useful for establishing the document’s origins and relationships to other items in the collection. Erway also illuminates a fundamental archival challenge in balancing the creator’s right to privacy against the public right to access.
In summary, Erway offers three steps for beginning a digital archive: establish basic policies for each type of born-digital item; inventory the digital collection and determine what formats and media storage ensure long-term sustainability; and seek other people and institutions developing similar digital collections.
Erway, Ricky
OCLC Research
2010
Polk, Victoria
OCLC Online Computer Library Center, Inc.
Ebook
http://www.oclc.org/content/dam/research/activities/hiddencollections/borndigital.pdf?urlm=168879
New Media: The Key Concepts.
Archives
This book addresses six key concepts that are pivotal for understanding the influence of new media on contemporary culture. The specific chapter on Archive lays the groundwork for understanding digital archiving. It reiterates the work of Derrida and Foucault, providing context, while also touching on new technology uses in the digital age. Gane and Beer conclude “archives are depositories for the storage of written documents. This chapter provides foundational history on digital archiving while touching on critical theorists creating a bridge between literary studies and technology. As an introductory chapter on the archive, it provides a scope of understanding for new scholars interested in learning about creating an archive.
Gane, Nicholas
Beer, David
2012
Elena Rogalle
Book
ISBN-13: 978-1845201333
Archive Everything : Mapping the Everyday
archive
Examines how the archive evolved to include new technologies, practices, and media, and how it became the apparatus through which we map the everyday
Giannachi, Gabriella
Cambridge, MA : The MIT Press
2016
Steven Eley
eBook
ISBN: 9780262035293. 9780262335416.
What is an archive?
Archives
Iconic Productions & The National Archives UK
2013, 10/24
Jordan Lunsford
Video