News

The Digital Preservation Coalition is delighted to welcome the University of Manchester Library as its newest member.

'The University of Manchester Library has a strong interest in digital preservation at both a strategic and operational level,' explained Sandra Bracegirdle. 'We have recently carried out a significant review of our digital preservation work as we see this as a key issue for the Library. '

The Digital Preservation Coalition is delighted to welcome Royal Museums Greenwich as its newest member.

Richard Ferguson, Documentation Manager, Royal Museums Greenwich said 'Having the opportunity to join a community of practice which has a focus on addressing and developing greater understanding of the challenges of digital preservation is most timely.'

The DPC, Richard Wright and Charles Beagrie Ltd are delighted to announce the release of the latest DPC Technology Watch Report ‘Preserving Moving Pictures and Sound’, written by Richard Wright, formerly of the BBC.

‘Moving image and sound content is at great risk’, explained Richard Wright.  ‘Surveys have shown that 74 per cent of professional collections are small: 5,000 hours or less. Such collections have a huge challenge if their holdings are to be preserved. About 85 per cent of sound and moving image content is still analogue, and in 2005 almost 100 per cent was still on shelves rather than being in files on mass storage. Surveys have also shown that in universities there is a major problem of material that is scattered, unidentified, undocumented and not under any form of preservation plan. These collection surveys are from Europe and North America because there is no survey of the situation in the UK, in itself a cause for concern.’

DPC started a new Strategic Plan for 2012-2015, which was adopted by the members at the AGM in December 2011.  The Board Meeting in March included a discussion of the Forward Work Plan for 2012-2015 which spells out key dates and actions over the same period.

The DPC and Neil Beagrie (of Charles Beagrie Ltd) are delighted to publish the outline for a new Technology Watch Report on 'Preservation, Trust and Continuing Access to E-Journals'.  This report, which will become the ninth in the popular series,will provide a guide to current developments, practical and emerging issues which organisations are facing in the area of preservation, trust and continuing access for e-journals and in addition generic lessons on issues of outsourcing and trust learnt in this field of interest to a wider community.  The report has been supported by a member briedifing day held in January and is due for completion in July 2012.

DPC Executive Director, William Kilbride, was invited to a small workshop in London at the start of March on the broad topic of ‘Curation and The Cloud’  The manuscript of his invited paper 'Curation, The Cloud and Cultural Heritage' has been released for members: http://www.dpconline.org/component/docman/doc_download/747-curationcloudculturalheritagemarch2012 (login required)

DPC is delighted to offer members a preview of our latest Technology Watch Report ‘Preserving Moving Pictures and Sound’, written by Richard Wright, formerly of the BBC. 

‘Moving image and sound content is at great risk’, explained Richard Wright, the report’s author.  ‘Surveys have shown that 74 per cent of professional collections are small: 5,000 hours or less. Such collections have a huge challenge if their holdings are to be preserved. About 85 per cent of sound and moving image content is still analogue, and in 2005 almost 100 per cent was still on shelves rather than being in files on mass storage. Surveys have also shown that in universities there is a major problem of material that is scattered, unidentified, undocumented and not under any form of preservation plan. These collection surveys are from Europe and North America because there is no survey of the situation in the UK, in itself a cause for concern.’

Preserving Email, a new report from the DPC, gives practical advice on how to ensure email remains accessible

Email is a defining feature of our age and a critical element in all manner of transactions. Industry and commerce depend upon email; families and friendships are sustained by it; government and economies rely upon it; communities are created and strengthened by it.  Voluminous, pervasive and proliferating, email fills our days like no other technology.  Complex, intangible and essential, email manifests important personal and professional exchanges.  The jewels are sometimes hidden in massive volumes of ephemera, and even greater volumes of trash.  But it is hard to remember how we functioned before the widespread adoption of email in public and private life.