Librarianship
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NFORMATION WEEK WORKSHOP PAPER PRESENTATION
Contents |
THEME: INFORMATION, KNOWLEDGE AND RESPONSIBILITY: INFORMATION PROFESSION IN A NETWORK SOCIETY
TOPIC:
PRESERVATION AND THE LIBRARY: FAILURES, FEARS AND THE FUTURE
PRESENTERS: MURUMBA JOAN WAKASA AND KAMAU VICTOR GITAU CONTACT AUTHORS: victorggk@yahoo.com
PRESENTED AT: SCHOOL OF INFORMATION SCIENCES, MOI UNIVERSITY ELDORET, KENYA
ABSTRACT
Preservation is an important purpose of any type of library. In fulfilling this purpose librarians face challenges. The purpose if this paper is to outline various preservation measures taken by librarians in preserving both physical and digital information, failures they have encountered and the fears they have of adopting the new technologies for preservation. It also set out possible future approaches to the question of preservation.
== INTRODUCTION ==
Society has never before, attached so much importance to research and learning as at the present time. In all countries of the world intellectual activities have been increasing, more people are being educated at schools and in universities. Today we’ve FPE, adult education or mature entrance in our universities, the awareness of the cultural past of a people and the basis of international concepts and exchange. Libraries are especially important in the process of learning and research. Within their wall are housed the source materials and circumstantial evidence for historical research. Libraries also are centre for worldwide transfer of knowledge. The preservation and conservation of library materials is a task entrusted to the preservation librarian. In every country a major concern of those responsible for valuable documents is that, increasing use, heightened environmental pollution, climatic influence, and insect pests, also chemical and mechanical negative influences expose materials to an accelerating process of wear and disintegration.
In Proverbs 29: 18 the Old Testament say, “Where there is no vision, the people perishâ€. Equally, where there is no vision, the record of what the people have created will perish. Our concern today is to bring vision to the preservation of the threatened record civilization, the record of which we, here are pre-eminently the custodians. A vision that will save the fruits of the human intellect for future generations.
PRESERVATION
Preservation refers to the art of anticipation and preventing decay or reducing the risk of damage by stabilizing environmental conditions under which information materials are kept.
According to Ross hawlet (1983) preservation is a broader concept than conservation as it covers all actions relating to the protection, maintenance, restoration including conservation.
IFLA defines it as the managerial and financial considerations including storage and accommodation provisions, staffing levels policies, techniques and methods involved in preserving library and archival materials.
ICA defines it as the totality of processes and operations involved in the physical protection of records and archives against damage or deterioration and in the restoration or repair of deteriorated documents.
Conservation
IFLA describes conservation as denoting these specific policies or practices involved in protecting information materials including the methods and techniques devised.
Vena, V and Vines, R define it as the operations which together are intended to prolong the life of a document by forestalling damage.
In its traditional usage the term conservation was taken to consist of the following activities:
* examination * preservation * restoration
Restoration
Restoration (repair) refers to specific measures taken to rehabilitate and reinforce damaged or deteriorated documents.
According to IFLA, restoration denote the techniques and professional judgements used by specialized conservators in the repair of damaged material due to passage of time, use and any other related factors.
PRESERVATION AND SECURING INFORMATION
It is evident that, one of the primary functions of all libraries and information centres is the preservation and security of information for the benefit of the present and future generations of users. This is a function among others like, determining information needs of users, selecting information sources to meet the users’ needs, acquiring information sources, organizing knowledge and disseminating information sources and promoting the use of information. We are able to learn about past civilizations through documenting evidence preserve and secured from the time of their publication. Documents must be protected from natural elements such as fungi, dust, insects, animals, moisture, earthquake, Ultra-violet radiation and some unscrupulous human beings. If information sources are secured and preserved at information centres to be available, information seeker will be in a position to find those sources. Various methods have been devised to ensure adequate security against theft of documents.
== REASONS FOR PRESERVATION OF INFORMATION ==
* For legal requirement * To enable access of information or reanalyzing of it in systems and environments not very different from that in which it was created. * For evidence of what was done or what was not done. * Because of short life of the storage media * For educational purposes- to prevent duplication of knowledge and effort in future and to enhance its continued development * To protect and present the society heritage at request in all times- now and in the future. * To enhance preservation of a nations culture in terms of intellectual content and original formats of items * To help to counteract damages caused by enemies of records
== PRESERVATION OF PAPER-BASED INFORMATION MATERIALS ==
Paper is a substance made in the form of thin sheets from wood and other fibres materials used for writing. It is the most widely used material as the carrier of information.
Libraries and information centres preserve materials which are so important that measures have to be put in place to ensure that they last for as long as possible. In case of increased demand of information, definitely there will be an increase of use of information material available. Careless handling of these information materials and other factors may lead to deterioration.
CAUSES OF DETERIORATION
1. Biological agents
1. Insects
1. Silverfish: these tend to feed on products with high level of proteins and carbohydrates and are found on paper related products. They are considered to be paper surface feeders. They leave black excreatment on paper while feeding which develops spot.
2. Bookworms feed on paste and glue of the spine and cover of bindings.
2. Fungi are mushroom plants without chlorophyll that feed on organic matter. They cause damage to library materials by forming brownish to greenish patches on paper.
3. Rodents destroy information materials in order to create rest. They defecate and urinate on materials also they chew insulation of electrical cables which can cause fires outbreaks in the library
2. Physical agents
1. Light: it provides energy that speeds up the chemical reaction in the paper. When in contact with paper it (paper) absorbs part of the light and the resulting in changes papers molecular structure, the paper fibres are then weakened.
2. Temperature and relative humidity: temperature is a term used to measure the degree of heat of coldness in an entity. Humidity is the amount of water vapour in a volume of air expressed as a percentage of maximum amounts the air could hold at the same temperature. Excessive temperature and relative humidity causes the following problems:
* paper decomposition through the process of hydrolysis, * Weakens the paper fibres * Combination of uncontrolled relative humidity spread of micro organisms that are harmful to paper. * Accelerates natural aging in paper because it subjects paper to greater tensile and compression strains and destroys its structural links
3. Chemical agents
1. External: Environmental pollution is considered a major contribution to deterioration of information material. It may be caused by liquids, gases and vapours pollutants may be created by industrial activities, accidents, aspects of natural environment e.g. volcanic eruptions, war etc
2. Internal: agents in library, in-house activities in libraries, chemicals used to clean the library affect information materials, use of fumigants in library etc
4. man
1. Direct ways: vandalism, arson, irresponsible handling of information materials, stains and use of inappropriate storage system, lack of disaster plans, poor restorative measures etc
2. Indirect ways: use of photocopying facility, poor attitude towards information materials, acceptance of poor paper manufacturing practices etc
MEASURES
Preservation does thus entails taking measures that ensure longevity of library materials by avoiding environmental materials that would otherwise increase the speed of deterioration of these documents. Control measures to arrest deterioration include:
* Regular cleaning of building and often removing debris around them * Regular inspection of the building to locate, detect and destroy rodents and insects * Use of dehydrating agents in areas where insects may be present * Use of fumigation * Insect repellent chemicals e.g. Naptalin kept in dishes 6 feet apart on the shelves; for rodents use poisonous bails. * Use of special instruments e.g. Thermohygrograph which records fluctuations in temperatures and relative humidity by use of internal sensing instruments other instruments are paper RH indicators, thermometers etc * Ensure good ventilation fans or air conditioners * Use of dehydrating agents such as silker gel * Use of commercial dehumidifier machines * Good lighting of general illumination (=/- 50) lux * Installation of fire detectors and extinguishers * Provide procedures to follow in the care of books * Deacidification
FAILURES
This part of the paper discusses the reasons that are the cause of lack of achievement in preservation of information. Libraries all over are supposed to be responsible of the information provision and this is only possible if they have, in good care, the information. Lack of this information at the requested time by the users is a sign of failure, and if the cause is due to deteriorization of the material then the following reasons could be the cause.
a) Emphases on user services
The library materials, due to emphasis on user services, ends up in careless handling by staff under considerable pressure to ensure that readers get their documents within a short specified time. Libraries have been illusioned by the notion that the patron is the king to the extent that other library considerations are not taken care of. An example is a patron who asks to be issued with a material but the material is not bound, for the sake of satisfying the patron the material is issued leading to continued physical depreciation of the material.
b) Conception that preservation is for only special rare and valuable collection
Conception that preservation is a specialized activity, normally applicable only to special collections and rare or valuable individual items: This conception has lead to depreciation of heavily used general library materials in open shelves as they are not considered rare, valuable or in danger of extinction. This has failed the purpose of preservation because only when they (general materials in open shelves) become rare, are they considered for preservation by then those copies that can be found are not in good condition. A good example is the Canadian Architect and Builder, a journal published from 1888 to 1908 is the only professional architectural journal published in Canada before World War I. This journal documents a complete history of the architectural and building crafts in Canada. Profusely illustrated, the journal contains articles and advertisements from the industry of the time, providing an invaluable architectural, social and cultural record of this early period. It is a source of historical background to anyone doing research today in architecture and other disciplines in the humanities and social sciences. (Marilyn Berger, 1999) This journal, to date, is not accessible because preservation was not done when the journal was easily available efforts to digitize the journal are difficult because the available issues are deteriorated.
c) Effect of photocopying to original documents
The effect to the original document is a course of worry. The demand for photocopy can cause damage to unique or valuable originals; this is seen as a particularly significant problem, as it is supported by the senior management as a source of income.
d) Lack of preservation policy.
Policies are the guidelines that show us who will preserve what? What are the tools for preservation? How information on items preserved is shared? How can items preserved be shared? What are the directions to follow in preserving documents of various types? Without them any library is bound to fail as the staff in charge will be doing things as they feel.
A survey into preservation policies and practice in British libraries revealed that very few libraries have preservation polices; only 51 libraries (10.45 per cent) reported a written preservation policy. Paul Eden (et al), 1994. Considering that Britain is a developed country, the case could be worse in the developing countries like Kenya and Uganda.
e) Poor quality of paper
Manufacturers of paper and paper products; this is a problem as librarians have to contend with the question of what to do with disintegrating collections printed or written on poor quality paper such as newspaper. This is a reality that the preservation librarian has to learn to live with. Newspapers are meant for ephemeral information hence the quality of paper they come with; it serves the purpose. It is for the preservation librarian to devise means by which to preserve the document.
f) Proliferation of information materials
Due to information explosion, the rate of information flow is higher than that of preserving the same. This leads to a back log of materials to be preserved.
g) Inadequate funds
Funding for the preservation of library materials by the management is inadequate. Preservation is expensive and its benefits not immediate, this nature leads to the management to deal with the most immediate beneficial modules of the library system like user services. Costs included are in buying equipment, buying chemicals and materials, and paying. In some cases the management may have good reasons for not offering the funds as some preservation librarians do not exhaust the allocated funds. This was revealed in the survey into preservation policies and practice in British libraries where compared with acquisition the amount spent on preservation was low: of the 342 respondents who supplied the relevant information, 300 (87.72 per cent) said that they spent the equivalent of 0-29 per cent, 15 (4.39 per cent) the equivalent of 30-59 per cent, 10 (2.92 per cent) the equivalent of 60-99 per cent and 17 (4.97 per cent) the equivalent of 100 per cent or above. A further 31 respondents reported spending nothing at all on preservation. Paul Eden (et al), 1994
h) Copyright law
Copyright law has failed the efforts of preservation librarian. Some materials protected by the copyright restrict making of copies which restricts making copies for preservation purposes. This law, though, protecting the producers of information, it is a quandary to the preservation efforts.
i) Users carelessness
Users have not yet learnt how to use books with care. Users, though the most respected in the library programmes participate in the failure of preservation. Their careless handling of information materials contributes much to deterioration. This should be the duty of librarians to brief users on handling delicate materials such as rare books, maps, drawings, three dimensional artifact and archival materials.
j) Unsatisfactory staff training
This is another cause of failure in preservation of documents; it may not be so in the developed world where there are well structured personnel policies. In developing countries Kenya being an example, this is a disquieting problem. We may have good university and colleges curricula but as long as the bosses are not willing to release their subordinates to go and attain skills for fear that their position might be at risk or be training a staff only for her or him to go and work for another organization, then we cannot say we have skilled staff in our preservation units in libraries.
== PRESERVATION OF DIGITAL INFORMATION ==
A solution to the failures that preservation of information materials is faced with is to avoid preserving the material and instead preserve information itself. This is prudent because what the patrons want is information and if a library is able to provide it in a way that it serves the patrons needs, then there is no need to waste resources preserving information material. When dealing with paper it’s very had to separate information from the material carrying it but in the case of digital records, information can be separated from its carrier; transfer, distribution and use can be easily organized without being restricted by the material that carries information.
There are three approaches to the preservation of digital information as outlined by Lim S. L. (et al), 2003
(1) Preserving the original technology used to create or store the records
(2) Emulating the original technology on new platforms
(3) Migrating the records to up-to-date formats
1. Preserving the original technology used to create or store the information
This is adoption of museum approach to digital data preservation. Such an approach will require:
* digital archives to be transcribed every 10 to 20 years; * recording systems and media be preserved; as should * system hardware and software; * operating system; * operation manuals; and * Ample spare parts.
There is guidance on the media to be used for preservation of digital information. Such a guide by I.C.A has seven criteria to look for while selecting media for preservation. These criteria are:
* Open standards for digital recording on the medium; * Robust methods for preventing, detecting and reporting errors; * Sufficient market penetration; * Known longevity; * Known susceptibility to degradation or deterioration; * A favourable cost/benefit ratio; and * Availability of methods for recovering from loss. (I.C.A, 1987)
This method is costly and does not solve the problem of paper; in fact, it introduces preservation of equipment which can read the digital information. Libraries are not ready to adopt this problem as they will be taking the role of museums.
2. Emulating the original technology on new platforms
Emulation is using newer computers to provide environments that appear identical to old environments, allowing us to run older software and keep the original systems unchanged.(Kevin Ashley, 2004) Emulation requires the development of software applications on newer systems that can read and process records from earlier systems, thus delaying obsolescence. Information technology is advancing at such a rate that no manufacturer will bother to create software that are deemed archaic. Furthermore there is so much difference between the old technology of just a few years and the new one that matching them will be slowing the pace of advancement. Owing to the ever increasing complexity and variety of systems, this approach has been largely abandoned.
3. Migrating the records to up-to-date formats
Migration is the periodic transfer of digital information from one hardware/software configuration to another or from one generation of computer technology to a subsequent generation. The purpose is to preserve the integrity of digital information and to retain the ability for clients to retrieve, display, and otherwise use them in the face of constantly changing technology. Migration includes refreshing as a means of digital preservation, but differs from refreshing in that it is not always possible to make an exact digital copy or replica of a database or other information object (due to hardware and software changes) and still maintain the compatibility of the object with the new generation of technology. Some content, functionality, or structure may be lost during migration.
Digital migration requires the staff to have knowledge of the old formats as well as the new, the ability to analyze and recommend the best of new formats, the time to implement and test migration pilot programs, and the capacity to develop and continually refine migration processes. Moreover, during each conversion, the information is susceptible to corruption. Formatting can shift and data can drop out bit by bit over time. This can result from machine, software or human error leading to strange renderings of documents from which the original information cannot be recovered. Ideal policies, standards and strategies need to be formulated to ensure that authentic digital records can be preserved over long periods of time.
FEARS
The essence of the digital preservation problem is how to support the ability to digitally process and read many years from now the digital records being created today. With physical records, the information is contained on media that are durable which can be read by sight or with relatively simple viewing devices. (Lim S. L. (et al), 2003). The fears of preserving digital information will include the following.
a) Lack of organizational commitment
Lack of organisational commitment and willingness to allocate sufficient resources to preservation efforts is a major fear. Support by management is an element of success. Digital preservation is much costly than paper and it requires to be repetitive because of software and hardware changes. The question is, if there is not enough commitment to preserve paper records, will there be enough willingness to allocate sufficient resources to preserve digital information from the management?
b) Dynamism in technology and increased dependence on digital documentation
This has to do with the users of the library. The society in which the library is a part is attracted to ever changing technology such that they demand its (technology) application in all areas of life in Hospitals, government offices, banks and so are the libraries. This means that the library will have to live with the fear of new technology as users will always want to be associated with the recent technology.
c) The dependence of digital information on the specific hardware and software
The greatest challenge in electronic record keeping is the evaluation of technology (coomb 1999) new hardware and software are replacing the products and methods used to record, store and retrieve digital information on cycles of two to five years and no machine is capable of more than 30 years of retention and access. The dependence of digital information on the specific hardware and software is a grave fear to libraries concerning digital preservation as there is no standard criterion to be applied and it’s impossible to develop one least it be outdated by evolving hardware and software.
d) Power and machine dependence
Another problem with digital storage media is that they are not human readable thus require hardware and software. Unlike books, damage is not easily noticeable. One will see books crumbling down but there’s no way of looking at a magnetic tape and seeing errors in it. The tape will need be run, requiring a machine, with machine comes in issues of power: this dependence on power and machines increases fear that if one of them is not present then preservation will be impossible.
e) Cost, time and labour consuming
Digital preservation is Faced with technical difficult such as specialised expertise, requisite hardware and software, requirement of system documentation, requirement that data preservation tasks must be performed periodically for as long as ongoing retention is required is costly and time and labour consuming.
f) Information proliferation
Proliferation of information; thanks to information technology, is being created in large quantities in such forms as e-mails, e-forms e-documents, e-journals, e-magazines, e-transactions, databases and WebPages. Digital information does not only come in different forms but in many quantities. This increases the work of the preservation librarians and due to this load, a criteria of what is to be preserved is set out reducing the information available in the libraries. This will have its consequences in future as what is not worth now might be worthwhile in future.
g) Legal issues
Libraries will continually live in fear of copyright issues; some documents are protected by copyright not to be reproduced in any format without the written permission of the publisher. The publisher may take advantage and charge a fee if his book was to be reproduced in another format or reproduce the book and charge the new format at very high prices. Law on the other hand is not lenient US law for example allows libraries to create up to three digital copies of endangered works, but it is important to note that the law explicitly limits access to the premises:
The right of reproduction under this section applies to three copies or phonorecords of a published work duplicated solely for the purpose of replacement of a copy or phonorecord that is damaged, deteriorating, lost, or stolen, or if the existing format in which the work is stored has become obsolete, if:
(1) The library or archives has, after a reasonable effort, determined that an unused replacement cannot be obtained at a fair price; and
(2) Any such copy or phonorecord that is reproduced in digital format is not made available to the public in that format outside the premises of the library or archives in lawful possession of such copy.[3]. (Michael Seadle, 2004)
This law plays down the purpose of preservation which is to make available information at request by users.
FUTURE
a) Integrated archival approach
Lawrence (2001) feels a promising solution is to use an integrated archival approach. This involves using digital and analog systems together to gain the benefits of both. Digital allows information to be kept accessible and sharable. Analog provides insurers with the ability to keep digital documents and files available for decades upon decades, transcending technological advances without concern for alteration or loss of readability.
b) Metadata
Metadata is usually defined as data about data. Ultimately, it is a form of cataloguing used to give structure to unstructured digital information using standardized presentation and content. There are five overlapping types of metadata that allow an institution to manage, preserve, and provide access to digital resources.
+ Descriptive metadata describes the content of the digital object or collection – title, author, and subject data.
+ Administrative metadata details management information like location, access control, and copyright.
+ Technical metadata outlines file characteristics such as file format, scanning specifications, file size, software used, quality, and extent.
+ Structural metadata controls the relationship of the parts of a compound complex objects, like the pages and chapters in an e-book or the audio and text in a PowerPoint presentation. Lastly,
+ Preservation metadata is used to document the preservation process used to create the digital object or collection.
c) Collaboration
Libraries need to Collaborate with information providers such as publishers so that preservation of information can begin as soon as information is created. This will reduce the fear of legal issues and there will be demarcated activities of each stakeholder. For example the publisher should allow libraries to convert paper information into other formats so long as they maintain the original documents in which they first received.
d) Specialization of preservation
Speacized organizations will come up to take over the duty of preservation from libraries since the library is overburdened by user services. This will be good for provision of well cared for information and information materials for the future and reduce the libraries’ prestige as an information acquisition, processing, storage and dissemination of information.
e) Single Static preservation standard
International professional organizations should and will come up with single static preservation standard that entails preservation media, software and hardware. Single static here, means the standards so developed will be independent of technological advancement such that technology will seek to come with system hat fits the standards instead of shifting the standards to fit technology.
== CONCLUSION ==
The world today being an information society can not do without information. Information and information materials therefore need to be well taken care of so as to serve its primary function of providing information to both the current and future generations who need information for research, general knowledge and for decision making. Information is power and without it nothing can be done or achieved, research and experiments will all be untouched since nothing will be available to provide answers and direction. Though we need this information, failure towards information preservation has led to losing of most important documents of the country. There are also fears to preserving information due to the requirements needed for this task. Even though that is the case information will be preserved who will do it, and how is the question of the future to be answered by all informational professionals.
== REFERENCES ==
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