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Threat of data extinction

By: Hasan Jamal, Thu Oct 19th, 2006 06:01:09 AM

Keeping paper documents intact for years and years has become a matter of routine for historians and archivists trying to keep a record of history. But saving digital information is turning out to breed its own set of unique challenges. Because digital files depend on their context -- such as the operating systems in which they are stored and the applications that create and access them -- users typically must keep all elements of that context to access old digital documents. It is not unusual, for example, for companies to keep old computer systems around just to access old files stored on them. While software developers do offer some measure of backward compatibility for files created with older versions of their software, almost all software developers eventually stop supporting their earlier formats. If you never update your archived documents to your current software format using the appropriate filters, someday you will no longer be able to access those files.

Saving Digital Archives Eastman Kodak (NYSE: EK) is one company that is working on ways to save digital archives for future generations. Andrew Lawrence, marketing manager at Eastman Kodak's commercial imaging group, told TechNewsWorld that the realm of digital documents is much more fluid than the world of traditional paper-based documents. &quot;Electronic records are composed of binary data,&quot; said Lawrence. &quot;To be complete, the e-record must include content, context and structure, the data for which is frequently distributed across multiple sources, tracked as metadata.&quot; In other words, for human comprehension, this data must be able to be interpreted by technology to position it for printed presentation or output onto CRT screens. &quot;For ongoing availability,&quot; he said, &quot;all of the distributed data and the metadata must be maintained intact.&quot; This process contrasts directly with paper documents and conventional microfilm records, which are completely self-contained and do not need elaborate translation technologies.

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