SPEC Kit 325: Digital Preservation · 117
University of Utah
Digital Preservation Program: Organizational Policy Framework
http://www.lib.utah.edu/pdf/OrganizationalFrameworkFinal2011.pdf
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OBJECTIVES
The overall mission of the digital preservation program is to preserve and sustain
long-term accessibility to all digital collections created or collected throughout the
Library by maintaining a comprehensive digital preservation program. Additionally, it
should be noted that in order to manage digital collections over time, the program
must include the accessibility of the software and other discovery tools associated
with those collections.
Within the overall mission, we have the following objectives:
Enable uninterrupted (not necessarily instant) access to digital content over
time as technology for digital content evolves.
Collaborate with campus partners and regional and national institutions to
make the best use of resources and avoid duplication of effort.
Comply with and contribute to the development of the standards and best
practices of the digital preservation community.
SCOPE
The Library has primary responsibility for preservation of:
Digital library resources of enduring value
Digital resources from outside sources that the Library has contracted to
preserve for long-term access
Program limitations: This program’s top priority will not be to preserve objects that
are already commercially available elsewhere or that are preserved with a trusted
digital repository, except in the case of a future digital preservation strategy (such as
the LOCKSS model).2 The program will assess candidates for digital preservation
within budget limitations as well as explicit criteria specified by the Library’s Digital
Collections Policy and tool (url forthcoming).
Program priorities:
Unique materials in danger of obsolescence in analog form and identified as
“critical need” for digital preservation
Unique materials in digital form in danger of obsolescence or loss.
Digital collections earmarked by our patrons as requiring long-term access
Timeframe: Our policy, procedures, current and needed technical infrastructure,
refined selection criteria, and resources framework will be completed in 2012. At that
2 There may be cases in which the program will archive an object that is also available within another
trusted repository in order to retain the integrity of the collection. An example of this would be if a
faculty member deposits her research with the University of Utah’s Institutional Repository (USpace)
but also deposits or publishes some research elsewhere. Another example would include a case in
which the Library digitizes a rare book from its collection and Google Books digitizes the same book at
a later date. Although that content may be duplicated, the Library would have a responsibility to
retain its copy of the digitally preserved book because Google Books has made no claim to be a Trusted
Digital Repository and therefore its content is not guaranteed to be available in perpetuity.
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