[AT] OT... sort of - negatives

[Roy Morgan]

On Oct 19, 2009, at 8:56 PM, Larry Goss wrote:

> [Enter soapbox mode]
>
> Some of what you are saying, Hank, is similar to the official stance  
> of one of the library archiving societies.  Unfortunately, that  
> particular group is still operating under the assumption that once  
> an item is archived, it's been done and doesn't need anything  
> additional done to it.


<Authoritative Expert Opinion mode ON>

I can relate from "the horses mouth" his conclusion about this.  The  
fellow was at NBS (National Bureau of Standards, later NIST, National  
Institute of Standards and Technology), where I worked for quite a  
while.  He was the long time authority on microfilm, and called The  
Archivist of the United States by his first name, having worked with  
him personally for quite a few decades.

His opinion was this:  "For archival storage of information, there is  
only one choice: microfilm.  For use by researchers, librarians, the  
general public and whomever else, use digital methods.  Count on the  
digital forms for ease of use, easy search and retrieval, and lowest  
cost in the medium time frame.  But do NOT count on digits for long  
term storage - that is, from decades to hundreds of years."

<Authoritative Expert Opinion mode OFF>

Roy

Roy Morgan
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