ACRL News Issue (B) of College & Research Libraries


March 1997 /  195

Preservation 
N ews

Jan e Hedberg

Image collections report 
published
The Commission on Preser­
vation and Access recently 
published Digital Image Col­
lections: Issues and Practice. 
Written by Michael Ester, 
who has extensive experi­
ence in creating digital im­
age collections with both the 
Getty Art History Information 
Program and Luna Imaging 
Inc., the report focuses on 
the special nature o f digitiz­
ing visual collections. It cov­
ers technical, organizational, intellectual, legal, 
and financial issues, and provides basic infor­
mation about planning projects, working with 
images, and ensuring long-term access. O f par­
ticular interest are Ester’s observations on the 
higher production rates possible during pilot 
projects, compared to large-scale, ongoing pro­
grams. Copies are available for $15.00 from Alex 
Mathews at the Commission on Preservation 
and Access, 1400 16th Street, N.W., Suite 715, 
Washington, D.C. 20036-2217; phone: (202) 
939-3400; fax: (202) 939-3407; e-mail: amathews 
@cpa.org. Prepayment is required. Commission 
sponsors receive copies o f publications free-
of-charge.

N ew  NLA W eb sites
The National Library o f Australia (N LA) has two 
new W eb  sites about digital preservation. 
PANDORA (Preserving and Accessing Net
worked Documentary Resources in Australia), 
is a project to investigate and implement an 
archive o f electronic materials about Australia. 
In addition to a description o f the project and 
other documents, NLA has mounted National 
Strategy f o r  Provision o f Access to Australian 
Electronic Publications and Guidelines f o r  Se­
lection on a W eb site. These documents were 
developed for Australian use, but highlight some 
o f the issues faced by any organization creat­
ing a digital archive. Th e URL is http:// 
www.nla.gov.au/policy/plan/pandora.htm l. 
The Preserving Access to Digital Information 
(PA D I) Working Group has created a W eb site 
to provide information and guidance for pre­
serving digital documents. It covers a large num­
ber o f topics, including authenticity, migration, 
standards, legal issues, metadata, glossaries, and

bibliographies. This site is 
not limited to Australian in­
terests and contains links to 
international documents. 
The URL is http://www.nla. 
gov.au/dnc/tf2001/padi/ 
padi.html.

O ther W eb sites of 
interest
The Federal Library and In
formation Center Committee 
(FLICC) Preservation W ork
ing Group has an informa
tion resource list o f advisory 

organizations, providers o f services, supplies, 
and training, plus a list o f periodicals about 
preservation mounted on Conservation OnLine 
(C o O L ). T h e URL is h ttp :/ / p a lim p sest. 
Stanford, edu/bytopic/orgs/flicc1.html.

The Museum Security Network has created 
a W eb site devoted to security and safety in 
museums and other organizations that safeguard 
cultural heritage. Although primarily about mu­
seum and art security, it does include a section 
on safety in libraries and some o f the other 
links may be generally useful. The URL is http: 
//www.xs4all.nl/~securma/.

NDLF update
The National Digital Library Federation (NDLF) 
continues its work on creation o f a distributed 
digital library. It has provided support for two 
very different “testbed” projects which will ex
plore the architecture, discovery, retrieval, and 
archiving o f digital collections. The first project, 
“The Making o f America, Part II,” involves cre­
ating a large digital collection o f text and im­
ages about American history between 1850 and 
1920. It follows upon the work done by Cornell 
University and the University o f Michigan on 
“The Making o f America, Part I.” The second 
project, Advanced Papyrological Information 
System (APIS), involves creating common elec­
tronic access to important collections o f papyri. 
For more information on NDLF activities, con
tact the Commission on Preservation and Ac
cess (see address in first item above). ■

Jane Hedberg prepares this columnf o r  the College 
Libraries Committee, Commission on Preservation and 
Access. Submissions may be made to: Jane Hedberg, 
Wellesley College; JHEDBERG@WELLESLEY.EDU.

http://www.nla.gov.au/policy/plan/pandora.html
http://www.nla
http://palimpsest
http://www.xs4all.nl/~securma/
mailto:JHEDBERG@WELLESLEY.EDU


196 /  C&RL News