News from the Field

Applications, nominations invited for C&RL editorTracing Race at Iowa State UniversityProject Outcome for Academic Libraries releases new case studyDOAJ leads collaboration to improve preservation of OA journalsOCLC, Washington State University creating digital stewardship training coursesProQuest debuts Black Freedom Struggle websiteEBSCO releases 2021 Serials Price Projection Report

Revisión de programas para la gestión de repositorios digitales: una actualización

A review of software applications for managing digital repositories is presented. Information managers have at their disposal several alternatives beyond those that have achieved greater popularity in the area of academic repositories: DSpace and EPrints. Existing alternatives have evolved and implemented mayor improvements in their more recent versions, with the aim of adopting the latest standards for the semantic web and linked data. This paper provides a description of the new features incorporated into the latest versions of the most popular open-source products. The selection has been made using as a reference the information offered by the Digital Preservation Coalition (DPC), Digital Curation Center (DCC), National Digital Stewardship Alliance (NDSA), and Open Preservation Foundation. The conclusions of the study indicate that the combined use of different tools is needed to support a complete archive and digital preservation program, as no single application seems to be able to provide the features required for an effective strategy. Resumen Se presenta una revisión del estado de las aplicaciones informáticas para la gestión de repositorios digitales. Los gestores de repositorios disponen de distintas alternativas, al margen de las que han alcanzado una mayor popularidad en el área de los repositorios académicos, en particular DSpace o EPrints, que han evolucionado sustancialmente en sus últimas versiones. Esta evolución responde principalmente a la adopción de nuevos estándares diseñados en el contexto de la web semántica y los datos abiertos enlazados, y a la necesidad de incorporar a los productos funciones para la preservación digital. Se describe la evolución y las novedades incorporadas en las últimas versiones de los principales programas de código abierto u open source de gestión de repositorios atendiendo a los puntos anteriores. La selección se ha completado a partir de los datos disponibles en sitios de referencia como la Digital Preservation Coalition (DPC), Digital Curation Center (DCC), National Digital Stewardship Alliance (NDSA) y la Open Preservation Foundation. Las conclusiones señalan que una estrategia de archivo y preservación digital exige la utilización conjunta de distintos softwares, pues ninguno integra todos los componentes necesarios para implementar una estrategia de archivo digital y preservación efectiva.

The Intersection of Digital Humanities and Artistic Augmented/Virtual Reality Research in Hong Kong

Immersive media such as augmented reality/virtual reality (AR/VR) environments are growing in popularity both globally and in Hong Kong. In the artistic research sector, these projects may or may not have systematic digital preservation, data curation, or other digital stewardship components built into the creative process. Although digital multimedia preservation has been a long-standing topic of discussion for archivists, the complexity of immersive media projects raises questions regarding best practices and ensuring future accessibility. The author proposes that artistic AR/VR research in Hong Kong could benefit from the application of digital humanities practices, whether it be for archival, research, or further artistic purposes. This chapter reviews case studies in Hong Kong academic institutions to identify existing needs and makes recommendations for incorporating digital humanities practices into the creative and project management processes.

Complexities of Digital Preservation in a Virtual Reality Environment, the Case of Virtual Bethel

The complexity of preserving virtual reality environments combines the challenges of preserving singular digital objects, the relationships among those objects, and the processes involved in creating those relationships. A case study involving the preservation of the Virtual Bethel environment is presented. This case is active and ongoing. The paper provides a brief history of the Bethel AME Church of Indianapolis and its importance, then describes the unique preservation challenges of the Virtual Bethel project, and finally provides guidance and preservation recommendations for Virtual Bethel, using the National Digital Stewardship Alliance Levels of Preservation. Discussion of limitations of the guidance and recommendations follow.

The Gold (AU)DRIPSS Framework: Factors for a Maturing Digital Preservation Strategy

Originally presented to the National Digital Stewardship Alliance Digital Preservation 2018 (DigiPres), Las Vegas, NV.Recommended citation: Currier, B. D. & Butler, C. R. (2018). The Gold (AU)DRIPSS Framework: Factors for a Maturing Digital Preservation Strategy. Presentation to the National Digital Stewardship Alliance Digital Preservation 2018 (DigiPres), Las Vegas, NV. Accessed through LIS Scholarship Archive. Available at http://doi.org/10.31229/osf.io/fecwu As archivists, librarians, and preservationists develop and implement digital preservation strategies, they are often faced with choices and tradeoffs that are difficult to articulate to stakeholders. In this presentation, we will discuss the Gold (AU)DRIPSS framework as a way to consider prioritizing different goals and discuss those goals with stakeholders.

How power relations affect the distribution of authority

In this article we report on the distribution of authority over information practices observed in a postgraduate taught course at a large research university located in the UK. The course was designed using principles from information literacy (IL) pedagogy and represents the operationalisation of Radical Information Literacy (RIL) theory. By analysing course documentation, assessed online discussion board posts and through interviews with teaching staff and students we examine how and why the distribution of authority is a complex matter; not least that the liberatory intentions of the Programme Director actually contain repressive dimensions in practice. We identify that students are subjected to techniques of disciplinary power, including surveillance and normalisation, and that they resist these by communicating outside of official discussion board spaces. Such resistance is not necessarily problematic, as it enables learning. Notably, students demonstrate development of IL practices through, for example, shaping their information landscapes, digital stewardship and critical reflection.

How power relations affect the distribution of authority

In this article we report on the distribution of authority over information practices observed in a postgraduate taught course at a large research university located in the UK. The course was designed using principles from information literacy (IL) pedagogy and represents the operationalisation of Radical Information Literacy (RIL) theory. By analysing course documentation, assessed online discussion board posts and through interviews with teaching staff and students we examine how and why the distribution of authority is a complex matter; not least that the liberatory intentions of the Programme Director actually contain repressive dimensions in practice. We identify that students are subjected to techniques of disciplinary power, including surveillance and normalisation, and that they resist these by communicating outside of official discussion board spaces. Such resistance is not necessarily problematic, as it enables learning. Notably, students demonstrate development of IL practices through, for example, shaping their information landscapes, digital stewardship and critical reflection.