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Digital Preservation

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Course Details

Mon, Oct 12, 2015,through Tue, Oct 13, 2015
Seattle, WA

Are you starting to receive disks as parts of collections or have you discovered disks in boxes of paper records? Caring for the records stored on removable storage media (e.g. floppy disks, hard drives, thumb drives, memory sticks, CDs) requires archivists to extract whatever useful information resides on the medium, while avoiding the accidental alteration of data or metadata. In this workshop, you'll learn how to apply existing digital forensics methods and tools in order to recover, preserve and ultimately provide access to born-digital records. We'll explore the layers of hardware and software that allow bitstreams on digital media to be read as files, the roles and relationships of these layers and tools and techniques for ensuring the completeness and evidential value of data. We'll apply digital forensics tools and methods to test data, in order to illustrate how and why they are used. The course is administered over two days. Both days includes lecture, discussion and hands-on exercise components.

Upon completion of this course you’ll be able to:

  • Explain the roles and relationships between the main layers of technology required to read a string of bits off of a physical storage medium and treat it as a file;
  • Identify various forms of data that may be “hidden” on the physical storage medium;
  • Use write blockers and create disk images in order to prevent accidental manipulation of volatile data;
  • Identify and extract the data that a file system uses to manage files;
  • Apply digital forensics tools and methods to collections of records; and
  • Identify and compare alternative strategies for providing public access to data from disk images.

In addition, you'll explore the layers of hardware and software that allow bitstreams on digital media to be read as files, the roles and relationships of these layers and tools and techniques for ensuring the completeness and evidential value of data.

Who should attend?  This course is intended for any archivists, manuscript curators, librarians or others who are responsible for acquiring or transferring collections of digital materials, particularly those that are received on removable media.

What should you know already? Participants are expected to know basic archival practice and have intermediate knowledge of computers and digital records management. We strongly recommend that participants complete the Thinking Digital web seminar prior to taking this workshop.

This course is one of the Tools & Services Courses in the Digital Archives Specialist (DAS) Curriculum and Certificate Program!  If you intend to pursue the Certificate, you'll need to pass the examination for this course. Please follow Option 1 to access exam information.

The DAS Core Competencies Addressed in this Course:

  • #1. Understand the nature of records in electronic form, including the functions of various storage media, the nature of system dependence, and the effect on integrity of records over time.
  • #3. Formulate strategies and tactics for appraising, describing, managing, organizing, and preserving digital archives.
  • #4. Integrate technologies, tools, software, and media within existing functions for appraising, capturing, preserving, and providing access to digital collections.
  • #6. Curate, store, and retrieve original masters and access copies of digital archives.

Attendance is limited to 35.

Course Format: On Site
Address: Seattle, CA
 
Duration: 16 hours
Audience Category: Archivists, manuscript curators, librarians or others who are responsible for acquiring or transferring collections of digital materials, particularly those that are received on removable media.
Level: Beginner
Instructor(s): Dr. Christopher (Cal) Lee; Kam Woods, PhD
Maximum Attendees: 35
 
Cost Range: SAA Member $299 / $369 Employees of SAA Member Institutions $339 / $409 Nonmember $399 / $459
Provider: Society of American Archivists
Sponsored by: Seattle Area Archivists

Course website (external link)

This information is provided as a convenience for informational purposes only; it does not constitute an endorsement by the Library of Congress.