<$BlogRSDUrl$> Marcus P. Zillman, M.S., A.M.H.A. Author/Speaker/Consultant
Marcus P. Zillman, M.S., A.M.H.A. Author/Speaker/Consultant
Internet Happenings, Events and Sources


Tuesday, April 27, 2004  

National Electronic Records Archive Project Underway
http://www.archives.gov/publications/prologue/spring_2004_archivist.html

Just when you think you've got the hang of preserving the delicate papers of historic documents, along comes electronic parchment -- as fragile as the real thing because rapidly changing technologies can render its content as unreadable as crumbing paper records. What's a government archive to do with the electronic records of, say, active military folks who will need documentation in 30 years to claim veterans' benefits or Food & Drug Administration records that document adverse reactions to drugs -- long after today's hardware and software are replaced by unimaginable innovations? The U.S. National Archives & Records Administration is in the midst of a plan to archive millions -- billions -- of electronic government documents "so that anyone, anywhere, anytime, far into the future, can access these records with the technology in use then," says outgoing NARA director John W. Carlin. In addition to making a great leap forward in government archiving, he predicts the new products and processes will benefit other archivists -- including colleges and universities, libraries and archives, small businesses and large corporations. The first installment of an operational ERA is scheduled to be up and running in 2007.

posted by Marcus Zillman | 4:05 AM
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