The document discusses strategies for digitally preserving content with limited resources. It recommends using standard file formats like TIFF and WAV to mitigate obsolescence. Consistent workflows, file naming, and metadata practices are also advised. For storage, it suggests starting with CD-Rs or DVDs and upgrading to hard drives and tapes when possible. Regular verification of transferred files and creation of checksums are important preservation steps. The UW Digital Collections Center piloted digital preservation practices by establishing scanner performance baselines and custom workflows for preservation-level digitization.

1. Digital
Preservation
Digitization Basics for Archives and Special
Collections - Part 2: Store and Share
WiLSWorld 2015

2. SD
JH
CP
UW Digital Collections Center
Steven Dast
Digital Asset Librarian
Jesse Henderson
Digital Services Librarian
Cat Phan
Digital Services Librarian

3. “We'll examine
the issue of
digital
preservation . . . ”

5. “. . . including practical
steps you can take to
preserve your digital
content with limited
resources.”

6. Characteristics of digital information
Strengths
● Easy to make and transmit
perfect copies
● Machine readable content and
metadata facilitates automation
● Storage relatively inexpensive
and becoming more so
Challenges
● Fragile, easily malleable
● Storage media not durable
● High density of storage
● Requires technology to render
into human readable form
o Obsolescence
o Early signs of loss may not
be apparent
o Loss generally extensive

7. Two primary stages in digital lifecycle
Creation stage
● Intense, focused
action
● Maximize value of
digital material
● Risk of errors
Preservation stage
● Long-term,
sporadic action
● Minimize cost of
maintenance
● Risk of failures

8. Strategies for digital preservation
Take advantage of our strengths:
● Make lots of copies in different places
● Automate file handling and management
Take steps to minimize challenges...

9. Strategies for both phases
Use broadly supported standard file format that
store uncompressed data:
TIFF for images
WAV for audio
● mitigates obsolescence, data fragility
● facilitates future bulk processing

10. Strategies for both phases
Work as consistently as possible; keep good
records; document special cases
● Reduce cost of future preservation actions

11. Strategies for both phases
Use file naming system that is simple and
consistent, but flexible.
Remember: whatever system you choose is
(almost) entirely for your convenience—to the
computer they’re all just strings of characters.
Nevertheless, tool requirements (if and when
they exist) override any other factors.

12. Strategies — File naming
Avoid spaces and special characters (/ : * ? “)
Use letters and numbers, underscore ( _ ),
hyphen( - ).
Dot ( . ) is okay, but has a special function
For broadest compatibility, use 8.3 convention
Don’t use capitalization for meaningful
differences

13. Strategies — File naming
Effects and side effects of file names
● Identity
● Order / sequencing (0122.tif 0123.tif 0124.tif)
● Collocation / grouping
(ncb01.tif ncb02.tif ncb03.tif mca01.tif mca02.tif)

14. Strategies — File naming
Using meaningful file names can
● Facilitate error detection and recovery
o missing or misplaced files
● Aid ‘manual’ handling and checking of files
o Name order = natural order
o Name reflects content of file in some way
● Increase maintenance and correction costs
o Insertion or deletion of files in a sequence

15. Strategies — File naming
Also use directories to help organize files
● Same naming conventions apply (avoid . )
● Same naming benefits and cautions
● Nesting directories allows for richer
hierarchical relationships, but may foil some
automation options
● Limit to 500-1000 files when feasible

16. Strategies — File naming
UWDCC naming system for books:
One directory per volume, with flexible four-digit
sequential filenames. Directories may be
grouped for multi-volume monographs, by
series, by project, or several of the above
UWMad/Yearbooks/Yrbk1972/0001.tif

17. Strategies — File naming
UWDCC naming system for photographs:
Short alpha pre-fix with a flexible serial number,
ad hoc system of separation into directories,
usually based on serial number
UWArchives/uwar02/uwar02345.tif

18. Strategies — File naming
Bottom line:
If you have technical requirements for file
names, follow them.
Beyond that, choose a system that maximizes
human utility, keeping in mind the balance
between encoded meaning and requirements
for maintenance

19. Strategies for creation phase
Create high-quality digital surrogates sufficient
to meet current and anticipated needs
● Encourages future investment in the material

20. Strategies for creation phase
Create backups of current work and maintain
fall-back positions in case corrections are
needed
● Reduces cost of errors
● Mitigates fragility and malleability of data

21. Strategies for creation phase
Check your work at major transitions, not just
for quality issues, but also for completeness
and accuracy
● Increases value of the collection
● Facilitates future processing

22. Strategies for preservation phase
Choose storage media that best match your
resources and requirements.
● Make multiple copies so that you can react to failure
● If possible, mitigate technological risk by storing files on
different types of media
● Mitigate risk of physical disasters by storing media in
multiple locations

23. Strategies — Storage media
Technology Size Stability Cost
Flash storage 4 – 256 GB 5-20 years or less $0.50/GB
Hard drive
(magnetic disk)
1 TB – ? 25-30 years, prone to
mechanical failure
$0.05/GB +++
Magnetic tape 400 GB – 2.5 TB 25-30 years $0.01–0.50/GB
CD-R 630–700 MB 100–200 years for high-
quality media (MAM-A)
$2.50/disc =
$3.50/GB
DVD-R/+R 4.7 GB 100–200 years (?) for
high-quality media
$2.50–4.00/disc
= $0.50-0.85/GB
The Cloud 1 – 30 TB ? $0.002–0.10/GB
monthly!

24. Strategies — Storage media
Over its history, UWDCC has used
● JAZ disks
● Duplicate CD-R
● Duplicate data tapes
● Hard drives with duplicate data tapes
We currently have ~18 TB of archived data

25. Strategies — Storage media
Recommended options for getting started
● CD-R or DVD-R/+R
o Use the good stuff: MAM-A Gold Archive media
o Always make duplicates
o Consider supplementing with cloud storage
● Graduate to hard drives
o Active RAID-enabled disks much safer than stand-
alone hardware sitting on a shelf
● Add tape when technology staff can support

26. Strategies — Storage media
Avoid
● Flash drives — too unstable
● Reliance on the Cloud as your only archive

27. Strategies for preservation phase
Anytime you move data to a new medium or a
new physical device, verify!
(Now that you’re no longer actively working with
the files, it’s easy for a bad transfer to go
unnoticed.)
If the new media/device can be write-protected,
do so.

28. Strategies for preservation phase
Create checksums for each file that you archive
● Use now to verify files on transfer
● Use later to detect data degradation
● Also useful to determine whether files are
actually the same or not

29. Strategies for preservation phase
Keep track (metadata!) of where your files are
archived
● Material that can’t be located has not been
preserved
● Will help to prioritize future preservation
actions

30. UWDCC workflow
1. Metadata first: checklist for subsequent work
2-5. Working files organized under three
directories: original, inprocess, final
Initial scan to ‘original’ - never edited
Copy to ‘inprocess’ - cleaned up for access
Finished version to ‘final’ - metadata check
6. Distribution files created from ‘final’ masters

31. UWDCC workflow
7. ‘Click-through’ all images in test mode
7a. Once all is correct: public release!
8a. Recheck files against metadata
8b. Create checksums for local files
8c. Transfer files to archival media
8d. Verify checksums for transferred files
9. Now safe to delete working copies

32. UWDCC Tools
● Microsoft Excel or FileMaker Pro for metadata entry
(sometimes Access)
● Variety of scanners chosen to maximize flexibility
● Manufacturer’s software / VueScan
● GoldenThread (ISA) for evaluating scanner quality
● Adobe Photoshop for image editing
● AppleScript for custom automation of various workflow
tasks
● Built-in Unix functions for checksums, file-handling

33. Other tool options
Image editing:
GIMP (Windows, Mac, Linux)
Paint.net (Windows)
Automation:
VBScript, JScript, VBA (Windows)
Python (Windows, Mac, Linux)
Checksum and verification:
Fastsum, Checksum (corz.org) (Windows)

45. Summary
Both Phases Creation Phase Preservation Phase
★ Use broadly supported
standard file formats
(tiff, wav)
★ Develop consistent
workflow, document
special cases
★ File naming - follow
technical rules; design it
for humans
○ Balance between
using filename for
meaning and
keeping it easy to
maintain
★ Start with high-quality
scans of source
documents
★ Make backups of
current work, maintain
fall-back positions
★ Check work at major
transitions
★ Storage media
○ Start: CD-R or DVD-
R/+R, maybe
supplement with Cloud
○ Step up: hard drives
○ Add tape if can support
(Avoid flash drives and Cloud
as sole archive)
★ Verify anytime you move
things
★ Write-protect if you can
★ Create checksums
★ Metadata:
Know what you have, where it
is, and what you can do with it

46. Selected references and reading
General DP
http://digitalpowrr.niu.edu/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/Overwhelmed-to-
action.rinehart_prudhomme_huot_2014.pdf
http://commons.lib.niu.edu/handle/10843/13610
http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED426715.pdf
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digital_preservation
Filenaming
http://www.jiscdigitalmedia.ac.uk/guide/choosing-a-file-name
Storage media
http://www.nps.gov/museum/publications/conserveogram/22-05.pdf

47. Selected tools and resources
Scanning
http://www.hamrick.com (Vuescan)
http://www.imagescienceassociates.com/
(GoldenThread)
Image editing
http://www.gimp.org
http://www.getpaint.net/index.html
Archival CDs and DVDs
http://www.mam-a-store.com
Scripting
http://www.pctools.com/guides/article/id/2/page/1/
https://www.python.org
http://macosxautomation.com/applescript/firs
ttutorial/index.html
Checksum tools
http://www.fastsum.com
http://corz.org/windows/software/checksum/

48. Questions?

49. UWDC & Digital as Preservation
The UWDCC recently launched a pilot project in collaboration with our Preservation Department
to develop standards and guidelines for utilizing digitization as a preservation medium at UW-Madison.
This presentation focuses primarily on workflow
and only on changes we can and have
implemented in our current environment for
preservation-level projects.
Detail from page 2 of ‘The modern priscilla’ Vol. XXXVI,
No. V (July, 1922). The Dovie Horvitz Collection.

50. UWDC & Digital as Preservation
Type Hardware Software
High Speed scanning Panasonic KV-S3065C High
Speed Color Scanner
Reliable Throughput
Image Viewer (RTIV)
Flatbed scanning Epson Expression 10000XL
(includes one with Epson A3
Transparency adapter)
Epson Expression 11000XL
Epson Scan Utility
Overhead Reprographic
scanning
BetterLight Super 6K-HS Digital
Scanning Back
ViewFinder camera
control software
Slide scanning Nikon Super COOLSCAN 5000
ED film scanner
VueScan scanner
software
Digital photography
Equipment

51. UWDC & Digital as Preservation
The basics:
● What is Preservation? - Extending the useful life of our stuff.
● Why do we do it? Protect, Represent, Transcend.
Do something with those berries before they spoil! Pickle something! In essence,
preservation is extending the useful life of our stuff.
Don’t let those veggies just turn into compost. Protect! Secure the value and usefulness of
our resources.
Taste the summer sunshine in your veggies when you eat them out of season.
Represent! We want our digital formats to be an authentic representation of the original.
Pickles and jam exist only when cucumbers and berries are transformed into something
new Transcend! Preserve originals to take advantage of and/or discover new uses.

52. UWDC & Digital as Preservation
Prep:
1. Identify
What do we have that needs preserving? Where did it come from?
2. Evaluate & Assess
Make sure our equipment and ingredients are up to the preservation process. Figure out how much we can handle at one time.
3. Select
Condition: Does one thing spoil faster than another? High use: Which items circulate the most? Scarcity: What are others not
preserving?
4. Review your recipe
Consult the cookbooks (in our case FADGI) and make sure you’ve read through your
recipe. Have everything you need before you start.
Steps 1 & 3 handled by our Preservation Department.
Steps 2 & 4 done by UWDCC.

53. UWDC & Digital as Preservation
What did this look like at UWDC?
● Researched current literature - focus on FADGI.
● Established baseline, optimum performance data for hardware -
GoldenThread

54. UWDC & Digital as Preservation
FADGI = whoa…Lots to digest! Our takeaways:
Evaluate and Assess our digitization environment & tweak our recipe
● Quantifying Scanner Performance
● Targets and software to use for this: GoldenThread
● Color Management
Appendix A: Digitizing for Preservation Reformatting of
Photographs
Compare characteristics of preservation vs.
production master files.

55. UWDC & Digital as Preservation
Using GoldenThread
● Flatbeds and Epson Scan software - customizing the color balance
settings per scanner
● BetterLights and ViewFinder software - custom tone curves per set-up,
per scanner

56. UWDC & Digital as Preservation
Using targets and software to determine
performance
3s: +/- 6 aim points
4s: +/- 3 aim points

57. UWDC & Digital as Preservation
Established baseline, optimum performance.
Establish maintenance schedule.

58. UWDC & Digital as Preservation
Monthly: Check BetterLight and Flatbed performance against baseline
performance with Golden Thread
Quarterly: Calibrate monitors on reformatting supervisors’ computers
Zig-Align BetterLights (or more frequently if needed)
Biannually: Calibrate scanning station monitors
Calibrate and characterize BetterLights
(create new baseline tone curves in the software)
Calibrate and characterize Flatbeds
(update histogram settings)

59. UWDC & Digital as Preservation
Access recipe:
● 300 dpi
● 24-bit color or (grayscale on our high speed scanner)
● Flatbed, BetterLight or high speed scanner
● Custom tone curves on BL software per set-up
● Custom histograms on Flatbeds
● Cropping borders based on project
● “Cooked” masters archived
Original object itself is the preservation master (you intend to hold onto it) and digital
surrogates are for access.

60. UWDC & Digital as Preservation
Preservation recipe:
● 400 dpi
● 24-bit color
● BetterLight only (for now)
● Custom tone curves per project/issue
● Object target captured per page/scan
● Device target per project/issue/day
● Always crop outside the pages
● “Raw” and “Cooked” masters archived
Digital version expected to be the preservation master in the absence of the original object,
therefore highest possible fidelity is desired.