Conservation is a vital part of all preservation strategies. Even if the next step in a preservation plan is a transfer to new media, there has to be something – ideally in pristine condition – to be transferred. Digitisation and transfer processes actually occupy a tiny proportion of the lifetime of an object. For the majority of the time, the …
Tutorial: Restoration of AV material
Because audiovisual media are so easily damaged, restoration is an important process in preservation. A restored item is never completely the same as the original one, even though it might look and feel the same or better.Restoration has its successes and failures. There are defects that can be repaired, and others that can’t (or not so well). Also there are …
Tutorial: Making a preservation strategy
This tutorial is one of three covering a basic plan for preservation: making a map (of what you have), making a strategy (for what you want to do with what you have), and finally making a specific preservation plan (the actions needed, with costs and a timetable). Strategic planning begins with a strategy for the whole collection: why it exists, …
Tutorial: Mapping your AV Collection
When creating a preservation strategy for your collection, the first thing you need to know is what is in your collection and on your shelves. A collection map is the most logical way to visualise this.The map is not a catalogue. It is not about each individual item, but about each type of item. The groups of items can then …
Tutorial: Why digitise AV material?
The time, effort and cost involved in digitising an audiovisual archive is a major investment. It’s quite reasonable to ask for strong and compelling reasons to undertake this transformation. In this tutorial we explore the reasons for making this move from discrete and/or analogue storage, into a digital mass storage system.This tutorial breaks the reasons down into sections: Preservation, Restoration, …
Tutorial: Planning your preservation project
Archives tend to take a two level approach to preservation planning. First, they define their high-level preservation strategy. This defines what needs to be done, when it needs to be done by and how much it will cost in total. Secondly, they consider the operational aspects of preservation, by focusing on the details of how preservation will be done on …