Digital Curation

Community

A designated community is an established category of potential users in the information and archival communities who should be able to understand a certain number of data (Wilson, 2017). Such customers, consisting of many social groups, are archived and can change over time. Community refers to the consumers of the stored data. It is the primary user group that understandable information must be supplied to. The available information, in this case, has a variety of users that might require seeing, read and transform the data in future. These include:

  • Musicians

These are individuals who play music. They would be interested in such a d digital archive especially the ones who play such documented musical instruments (Adamou et al. 2019). The digital archives will help them have remote access for the development of music and musical workers.

  • Music Teachers

Teachers of music subject in schools would find such information useful in their profession as it would be a good reference source, as it would help them gain information on the musical data for the purpose of sharing the musical knowledge with the student.

  • Music Students

Students undertaking a musical course would perceive this a significant and reliable source of information in their research process. As this would provide them with the background information essential for developing the basis of their study.

  • Historians

The Musicologist had been collecting information about the origin and source of musical instruments. It provides rich source secondary of details for a historian researching on the musical instrument.

  • Museums

These are a source of history about people. The information that needs to be preserved can be of high interest to museums as they would also want to add it to their collection of history.

  • Documentarian

A documentary is a non-fictional movie that in a way captures reality. A documentarian would want to produce a film about musical instruments, and this would create a perfect secondary source of information.

  • International scholars

These are specialists in a particular branch of study. Such persons would want to study and understand historical musical patterns in trying to understand current music style.

  • Music Enthusiasts

These are music “diehards” who love learning and following music patterns. They would want to learn the history of specific musical instruments and how they were used and if they are still currently in use.

  • Musical instrumentalists

These are individuals or group of people who have a keen interest in musical instruments. They would be so much interested in these documents in learning about the history of the string instruments.

  • Music Producers

These are people who create musical sounds, especially in the digital platform. These group of persons would be interested in such instruments in wanting to learn about different sounds produces by these sounds.

  • Tourists

These musical instruments create a part of the history of the culture of people. Tourists would therefore be interested to see and learn how these devices were being operated.

In the light of the above-designated community, the digitizing of data should observe specific factors to serve the designated need to the above community (Willis et al. 2017).

  1. Accessibility of the Data: One of needs that should be considered is the accessibility of the data after it has been digitized. An interested party should be able to access and use it with ease.
  2. The Metadata: The Metadata describes information about another data. It should describe all the characteristics of the actual data. It should ease the work of retrieval to the end consumer of these documents.
  3. Security: The security of the digitized information must be considered. The stored data should be very secure in a way that it cannot be distorted or destroyed.
  4. Privacy: Privacy concerns the right issue, i.e., who has the right to access the documents and who doesn't. It involves making sure that the digitized data cannot be obtained by unauthorized persons.
  5. Sharing data: The main aim of curating data and digitizing objects is to ensure they are available for use and reuse. In other words, the data can be shared comfortably
  6. Citing data: People are increasingly publishing their data in databases. Exchanging data requires that data be curated correctly and in a way that can quickly be mentioned.

When digitizing this item, library and archives would be the most appropriate places to house these collections (Stobo et al. 2017). It is because libraries provide an array of sources of information and similar ones, which are made accessible to a definite community for reference or borrowing. This is because the items to be digitized are of interest to a specific community and ease of retrieval. Archives, on the other hand, contains a collection of historical documents and records providing information about people, institution, a thing or a place. Some of these materials can be availed in both library and archives, ie, some of the ancient documents can be preserved in the archives while the digital format is stored in a library for easy access by the interested parties.

Types of Digital Materials

A digital library is a unique library with digitized objects collection, which includes text, visual and audio collection stored as electronic media (Lawson, 2018).

Digital Books

This is a publication of a book that is availed in digital form. It consists both texts and images. These books are readable only on display of a computer or any other electronic device. Some refer to it as "an electronic version of a printed book" some books are produced and commercially sold as e-books to the e-market reader. Text materials, if left just on paper, has a potentiality of getting lost or documents getting worn out with the passage of time thus the idea of storing historical and present writings digitally is undoubtedly giving that piece of information a new and unlimited lifeline.

Some of the information in the offered list will undoubtedly fit well if stored as digital books/texts. Of course this would include research notes in A4 format, original manuscripts of published books, copies of printed books, scholarly texts, copies of Stringendo journal and letters from international scholars and musicians. The advantage of this is that the interested party will have the ease of retrieval since the metadata will also be availed electronically.

Audio Books

Audio Book is a book that has been recorded word for word in audio form. They are also called the talking books. It is a recording of a text or an album that you listen to instead that read. Audio books can be unabridged, i.e., word for word version or it can be the abridged, i.e., the one that has been edited to reduce some words but retain its original meaning. Materials available in this format would be easily availed in the digital library for interest partied to listen to. It would also be good to introduce the student to books above their level; it is also a channel for enhancing listening skills of learners. From the collection provided the items that would fall under this type of digital material are recordings of cello music on various media, including vinyl, cassette tapes, and CDs.

The kind of storage that was used in this case, where audios are recorded on tapes and CDs, is not a safe mode of safeguarding the information and could likely lead to losing some data after being handled by variously interested consumers for some time. Saving them where they can be availed digitally, therefore, will preserve them for quite a long time.

Videos

The video is a representation of moving visual images in encoded digital data format. It is different from analog videos where moving visible photos are represented by analog signals. One of the critical analog methods is that pictures are described in series of photographs which are projected in rapid secession. Digital images in the digital video are represented in quick succession. They are made in a way that they can be copied without distortion of original quality, unlike the analog ones which experienced generational loss when copied. Digital video can be stored in blur ray discs or computer hard drive, or they can be streamed online to the end consumer. 

As compared to analog videos, digital videos have ease of storage and sharing, have cheap and easy copying qualities and have the capacity for multicasting. It also has the benefit of incorporating analytical software of videos which allows object tracking, video search, and intrusion detection. Within this case, the most appropriate element stored under this platform would be the video recording of performances with local Australian musicians on Super8, and videotape.

Are there any materials that you wouldn’t select to be a part of the digital Archive?

In the given case there are no materials that I would prefer to store them as they are. I would digitize all the materials gathered (Steiner, 2017). That would include images of portraits and drawings from the 17th and 18th centuries featuring different stringed instruments, in particular viola-cello and stringed instruments by famous artists held worldwide in museums. The main reasons are:

  • Some of these ancient photographs must be almost worn out. Digitizing the would give them a new lifeline. This means that they would be open to being studied, analyzed and scrutinized by many generations in future since a digital image has an unlimited lifeline. It would not be so if the documents are left In their original form. Their life would be too short for them to serve the intended purpose of the collector.
  • Digitizing these old materials actually, gives access to consumers while still preserving the original. It is possible to archive the original document which displaying the original of it in the library where it is easily accessible. This has the benefit of increasing scholarly understanding of items while preserving the originals. The fragile condition of these documents prevents their use as it will lead to destruction. Thus this has become the universal motivation for digitizing ancient drawings.
  • Digitization of materials can help eliminate the problem of location. There is always an opportunity for collective digitizing of documents to allow reunification. It is still the case that most of the materials, even though related, was collected in far different geographical locations. Digitization, therefore, presents an opportunity of unification of this associated pieces of data to make accessibility easier for the end consumer. Many of the projects have been motivated by having a unified front of all the source document from all over different places.
  • Digitization of materials concerning cultural heritage can be of great benefit to the education system. These items present a culture of a given people. Those students studying history and culture will have an easy time understanding since even to the teaching fraternity presenting this educative collection simplifies the explaining work a lot.
  • When old materials are digitized, the originals are well conserved in an environment where they will not be tampered with. The preserved documents, in turn, provide a rich source of reference for the experts in that should there be a point of the argument about the digitized material, there is always the original where they can refer back and clear their case. It also provides a rich source of reference, especially when determining the age of the document or authenticity of the same by the relevant authorities.
  • It also offers multiple accessibilities of information and documents that would not be accessible in their natural form. Multiple access ensures that knowledge about some ancient practice, believe or product, that is manifested in the preserved item is shared by interested consumers all over at the same time.

What D&RI Information Would You Include for Each File Group/Type?

For data and digital objects to be correctly used, reused and shared, they need to be easy to identify and locate.in other words they should be discoverable (Park & Sinn, 2016). This is the ability of something or a piece of content to be easily found. In library and information science. Discoverability concerns many aspects of digital media, marketing, software development and many others. One of the requirements is to provide a descriptive metadata. It requires a standardized method of identification, that doesn't change with a change in location of the digital objects or alteration of data. This standardized process is referred to as persistent identifier

Libraries

It is a collection of information sources, which are similar and are made available to a defined community for borrowing or reference. It provides access to materials both digitally and physically, ie, it might be a room or a house, or it can be in virtual space. Usually, a library is organized and maintained by an institution, public body, private person or a corporate. Public libraries are meant for individuals who cannot afford to have a collection of books needed both hard copies or digital ones or someone who chooses to be there just because they need some materials which no one holds ownership of or researchers who might be in need of professional research.

In-library, access to information is provided by assigning a metadata (which is information about a document which contains the characteristics of that material, color, shape, size creator, etc.). Libraries can also develop and apply controlled vocabularies. Of late libraries are coming up with a method of tagging (this is using words to catalog a record.

Archives

These are accumulated historical documents or the actual place they are located. It provides a primary source of a material that has accumulated over an individual or an organization lifetime. They are kept to show the actual function of an organization or an individual. Archives is made up of documents that have been preserved permanently or for a long time on the grounds of their cultural, evidentiary or historical value. Most of these materials are unique and not published like books and magazines for which several copies exist. They differ from libraries in that regarding their functions although some items in libraries can also be found in archives.

Their provision of access to their subject of content is a secondary concern. They assign metadata but don't use controlled vocabularies as much as libraries. They also use other mechanisms such as tagging.

Museums

The museum is an institution that conserves a collection of facts and other objects of historical, cultural, or scientific importance. It is an institution, that is devoted to procurement, care, study and display of natural history. It functions as a non-profit making organization whose primary purpose is to serve the public interest. Many museums collect these items for public viewing only. Researchers and specialists are also served by museums. Some types of museums include science, natural history war, and children museums. The spirit of information digitization and increased capacity for digital storage is forcing museums to shift from their traditional exhibition to virtual display. For museums, provision of access to subject content is of secondary concern; assigning vocabulary and applying controlled vocabularies are also used, as is tagging more recently.

Name a metadata schema that you think would be most appropriate for this collection

A schema is a logical plan showing relationships between metadata elements, through rules establishments for the use and management of metadata (Balaji, et al. 2018). A metadata standard is called metadata scheme that is created and maintained by a standard organization such as ISO. It is therefore a requirement that a clear understanding of such definitions of data be established to ensure that its owners and users correctly and correctly use and analysis the information.

Access to Biological Collection Data (ABCD) schema.

ABCD is an emerging standard for both the data exchange and findings about species and is also called primary biodiversity data. The ABCD Scheme aims to provide data from a wide variety of databases and to be highly organized (Zizka et al. 2019). This is compatible with a variety of emerging data requirements. Structures exist in parallel in order to accommodate atomized information and unrestricted text. The main purpose is to promote accessibility of existing and emerging collections data banks at international level by maintaining a comprehensive schema for collection record. Because of its distributed network, it can handle data from a broad variety of databases which could help. (Suhrbier et al. 2017) Advantages and disadvantages of the ABCD schema are as follows:

Advantages

  • Complexity -

It can be argued that it is one of the most complicated standards because it provided a vast pool of opportunities for the user.

  • Structured -

ABCD is a well-structured schema that accommodates a wide variety of databases.

  • Flexibility -

This schema is very flexible as can be used for various kinds of objects. This would include architecture, history of technology, natural history

Disadvantages

  • Simplification -

The complexity of its acceptance is one of the biggest challenges. Things that tend to give an experienced individual a wider range of opportunities can hinder a novice. Its complexity frightens those who do not have any experience.

  • Reducing Elements -

Elements that candidates for removal are specific elements that are hardly used. This means that more than one provider uses only one third of the components. The main reason is that GBIF ignores most of the elements.

  • Enhancing Capability -

The edition of ABCD has been completed over the years. The attempts to standardize have advanced. Although ABCD definitions have been taken into account in the proposal for new standards, certain discrepancies are evident. The definitions should also be evaluated and compared to the related concepts.

Where would you go to ask for advice on more specific preservation formats

Not all formats that are necessarily made and designed for archiving and preservation. A reservation format and policy must recognize the requirements of collection content and decide which form would be most suitable for preserving the identified qualities. Combining substance with a proper preservation format choice helps to determine what is essential in content.

The most suitable place to seek for advice is National Archives. This is the body that is mandated in archiving state documents. Being a state body, they are best suited in advising on the best formats that you can use to preserve your materials and objects. Their main specialty is storing and protecting the collected historical records and documents. Here depending on the nature and state of the material you want to preserve they will analyze and give you the best format that will ensure that your documents live beyond their life expectancy.

Some of the preservation formats, would not be suitable for some documents, therefore before embarking on choosing a format, it is good to consult on all levels to have the best formats that will ensure that your data lives for unlimited life

References for Digitization and Preservation of Data

Adamou, A., Brown, S., Barlow, H., Allocca, C., & d’Aquin, M. (2019). Crowdsourcing Linked Data on listening experiences through reuse and enhancement of library data. International Journal on Digital Libraries20(1), 61-79.

Balaji, B., Bhattacharya, A., Fierro, G., Gao, J., Gluck, J., Hong, D., & Berges, M. (2018). Brick: Metadata schema for portable smart building applications. Applied energy226, 1273-1292.

Lawson, N. (2018). Digital Library Preservation Strategies. Scientific e-Resources.

Park, T., & Sinn, D. (2016). Evaluation of open-source software for participatory digital archives: Understanding system requirements for No Gun Ri digital archives. Journal of Korean Society of Archives and Records Management16(1), 121-150.

Steiner, M. R. (2017). Resisting digital archive fever: a critical investigation into the management of QTIPOC cultural heritage in the digital environment (Doctoral dissertation, C).

Stobo, V., Patterson, K., Deazley, R., & Jaszi, P. (2017). Digitisation and Risk. EThOS3(5), 15.

Suhrbier, L., Kusber, W. H., Tschöpe, O., Güntsch, A., & Berendsohn, W. G. (2017). AnnoSys—implementation of a generic annotation system for schema-based data using the example of biodiversity collection data. Database2017.

Willis, C. G., Ellwood, E. R., Primack, R. B., Davis, C. C., Pearson, K. D., Gallinat, A. S., ... & Sparks, T. H. (2017). Old plants, new tricks: Phenological research using herbarium specimens. Trends in ecology & evolution32(7), 531-546.

Wilson, T. C. (2017). Rethinking digital preservation: definitions, models, and requirements. Digital Library Perspectives.

Zizka, A., Silvestro, D., Andermann, T., Azevedo, J., Duarte Ritter, C., Edler, D., & Svantesson, S. (2019). CoordinateCleaner: Standardized cleaning of occurrence records from biological collection databases. Methods in Ecology and Evolution10(5), 744-751.

Remember, at the center of any academic work, lies clarity and evidence. Should you need further assistance, do look up to our Computer Science Assignment Help

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