This comprehensive international bibliographyspanning the years 1830-1983covers over a dozen areas of concern to librarians and archivists, including earthquakes, fire, flood and water damage, warfare, vandalism, and much more. For all individuals and institutions concerned with the protection of their collections, this bibliography is an excellent source of information.

For any library, archive, or historical society committed to getting materials back into circulation as quickly as possible, this reference offers a one-stop solution. From the issues relevant to directors to hands-on instructions for technicians, it's an excellent reference for the entire library.

Much has happened in libraries and information in the last ten years and preservation and conservation issues have developed accordingly. The authors carried out a survey of around 500 British libraries to study preservation management practices over that period and the results of this questionnaire are the basis of this book. In analysing the responses it was clear that the fundamental issues about the access to and use of books were being addressed; preservation and retention of materials and media being the foundation of access. Having put the research into its historical context, the book moves on to the findings about management attitudes and practices. Policy issues are considered, and some of the national and international prescriptive policy documents issued by professional organizations are compared with those from the British libraries. The differences between the two form the basis of suggestions about how individual libraries might develop preservation policies and also what national policies could be considered. This is a book that will enable all librarians from all sectors to understand the importance and nature of preservation policies and to begin to create or improve their own.

The Eastern and Southern African Regional Branch of the International Council of Archives (ESARBICA) is dedicated to keeping and preserving records and documents so they may be accessible to the public. Constant research and re-examination of current record-keeping methods, such as the Electronic Document and Records Management System (EDRMS), is necessary to ensure the preservation and dissemination of information. Cases on Electronic Record Management in the ESARBICA Region is an essential reference source that shares case studies on the development and implementation of records management strategies including the procurement and implementation of EDRMS. Covering topics such as record management strategy development, e-records readiness, and legal frameworks, this book is ideally designed for archivists, librarians, records specialists, knowledge managers, ICT professionals, policymakers, system analysts, project managers, legal officers, academicians, researchers, and students.

This dictionary is an english-language resource for terminology used in all types of libraries. With more than 4,000 terms and cross-references, the dictionary's content has been carefully selected and includes terms from publishing, printing, literature, and computer science.

Despite the fact that they have different legal statuses, legal frameworks, and operational workflows, some politicians and bureaucrats think that there is much to gain if libraries and archives work closely together or even merge. Veteran archivist and librarian Tomas Lidman analyzes the facts and arguments behind a growing debate as to what extent libraries and archives are fulfilling the same missions. Offering a simple but comprehensive background to explain the key issues, this book stimulates debate, brings forth valuable facts, and presents scenarios for the future as libraries and archives approach the digital crossroads. Focusing on national libraries and national and regional archives from an international point of view, this book provides librarians and archivists with the history and facts they need to better inform their decisions.

This paper is a response to discussions of digitization at meetings of the National Humanities Alliance (NHA). NHA asked the Council on Library and Information Resources (CLIR) to evaluate the experiences of cultural institutions with digitization projects to date and to summarize what has been learned about the advantages and disadvantages of digitizing culturally significant materials. Findings revealed that digitization often raises expectations of benefits, cost reductions, and efficiencies that can be illusory and, if not viewed realistically, have the potential to put at risk the collections and services libraries have provided for decades. One such false expectation--that digital conversion has already or will shortly replace microfilming as the preferred medium for preservation reformatting--could result in irreversible losses of information. This paper defines digital information; identifies weaknesses of digitization as a preservation treatment; discusses the benefits and drawbacks of digital technology for access; and highlights issues institutions must consider in contemplating a digital conversion project. (AEF)

Memory institutions such as libraries, archives, galleries and museums all share pressing concerns about preserving heritage, whether in the form of material and documentary cultural artefacts in collections, or in the form of new digitally born material. Recent incidents of natural disaster and cultural genocide, together with the global turn to digitization, have forced librarians, archivists and curators to rethink and restructure their primary modes of operation. Preservation management now sits at the top of the agenda for heritage institutions around the world, as collection development policies and practices are negotiated between libraries, museums, archives, funding agencies and governments. Historically separate cultural institutions are now converging to share limited resources, develop compatible ideologies and co-ordinate distributed collections. This forward-looking collection charts the diversity of preservation management in the contemporary information landscape, and offers guidance on preservation methods for the sustainability of collections from a range of international experts. The authors are connected to a wide international network of professional associations and NGOs, and have been selected not only for their specific expertise, but for the contribution they are making to the future of preservation management. The chapters cover: managing the documentary heritage: issues for the present and future preservation policy and planning intangible heritage: museums and preservation surrogacy and the artefact moving with the times in search of permanence a valuation model for paper conservation research preservation of audiovisual media: traditional to interactive formats challenges of managing the digitally born artefact preserving cultural heritage in times of conflict access and the social contract in memory institutions redefining 'the collection' in the 21st century. Readership: There is urgent need for heritage management initiatives and robust disaster planning that will safeguard our cultural heritage and recognize the right of the end-user to ownership of it. This is an informed and essential guide to managing collection and preservation strategies for anyone working in the library, archive, museum or broader cultural heritage sectors.