Download libraries launch inaugural digital preservation week and mark 25

MEDIA RELEASE
29 July 2016 for immediate release
Born Digital 2016: libraries launch inaugural digital preservation week and mark 25 years
of life on the web
Libraries across Australia and New Zealand are set to launch Born Digital 2016 and the inaugural digital preservation week –
raising awareness of the importance of preserving digital content for the public good and as a record of 21 st century history
– 25 years to the week since the first public website went live.
Beginning Monday 8 August, the National and State Libraries of Australasia will roll out events and online activities that ex plore
questions about collecting and preserving digital content and examine the technical, social and philosophical questions of our digital
lives.
Throughout the week each library will publish the Born Digital series of online interviews with experts in a range of disciplines from
astronomy to journalism, as they discuss the profound importance of digital preservation to their work.
Sarah Slade from State Library Victoria is coordinating the week: “Since the I nternet went public 25 years ago the volume of digitally
created material has expanded exponentially and replaced a huge number and variety of physical records. Consider the number o f
letters that were once sent that are now emails or photographic prints that are now digital photos that have no physical copy.
“We have more information today than at any other point in history but is more fragile than we imagine. There are 1000 -year-old
books that can still be easily read but how many of your 25-year-old floppy discs can you still use?
“Libraries take this very seriously and are working hard to ensure this information doesn’t disappear, but it is as much a social issue
as an institutional one – everyone must think about their information and what they are doing to make sure it isn’t lost.”
Currently NSLA libraries house 5 petabytes of digital information which, if stored on 3.5” floppy discs comm only used 25 years ago,
would stretch around the Earth 8.3 times.
“This amount of data is vast but it is nothing to what will exist in 5 or 10 years from now. Being diligent about our digital information
now means we won’t have an information crisis in 10, 50 or 100 years from now.”
How is the State Library of South Australia involved?
“At the State Library of South Australia, we have been very conscious of the importance of capturing digital information and
appropriately saving and storing it. Equally important is assuring our community that we have the capability to make it available to
them in the future”, said Director Mr Alan Smith.
“We all know that technology has moved at a rapid pace, and while Libraries have taken a leading role in ensur ing we have the
capacity to identify, save and store files in formats that have never had a physical life, it is now important that we raise the awareness
in the community. We need to encourage personal consciousness of the value and inherent risks associated with personal digital
collections.”
As part of Born Digital 2016 the State Library of South Australia (SLSA) is presenting a Preserving Your Digital Memories
workshop. Preserving your digital information is a concept that most people have little exper ience with. Join SLSA staff as they
provide tips on how to preserve your ‘born digital’ memories, and keep them alive and accessible for future generations.
Workshop: Thursday 11 August, 6.00pm, Hetzel Lecture Theatre, Institute Building, North Terrace, f ree, bookings essential –
http://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/digitalmemories.
National program for the week
One Born Digital interview video will be released each day over Digital Preservation Week:
 Monday 8 August: Science and space with Dr Alan Duffy
Dr Alan Duffy is an astronomer and science expert at the Centre for Astrophysics and Computing at Swinburne University,
Melbourne.
 Tuesday 9 August: Indigenous voices with Dr Rachael Ka’ai-Mahuta
Dr Rachael Ka’ai-Mahuta is Senior Lecturer, Associate Director: Te Whare o Rongomaurikura – The International Centre for
Language Revitalisation at the Auckland University of Technology.
 Wednesday 10 August: Truth and history with John Birmingham
Author and journalist John Birmingham’s books include ‘He Died with a Falafel in His Hand’ and ‘Leviathan: an unauthorised
biography of Sydney’.
 Thursday 11 August: Digital lifestyles with Dr Rebecca Huntley
Dr Rebecca Huntley is a social researcher and writer with degrees in law and film studies and a PhD in Gender Studies. She is
currently Senior Editor & Director of Insights & Research at Mama Mia Women's Network.
 Friday 12 August: Play with Bajo and Hex
Bajo (Steven O'Donnell) and Hex (Stephanie Bendixsen) are Australia’s best known video game critics, writing and presenting
ABC TV’s Good Game and its companion shows, Good Game Spawn Point and Good Game: Pocket Edition.
Visit each individual National, State and Territory library to discover what Born Digital activities they have planned:
National Library of Australia: nla.gov.au
National Library of New Zealand: natlib.govt.nz
ACT: library.act.gov.au
NSW: sl.nsw.gov.au
QLD: slq.qld.gov.au
SA: slsa.sa.gov.au
TAS: linc.tas.gov.au
VIC: slv.vic.gov.au
WA: slwa.wa.gov.au
Or visit: nsla.org.au/born-digital-2016
-ENDS-
National media contact: Matthew van Hasselt
State Library Victoria
328 Swanston Street, Melbourne VIC 3000
Ph: 03 8664 7263
Email: [email protected]
South Australian media contact: Bev Scott, Manager Marketing
State Library of South Australia
Cnr North Terrace & Kintore Avenue, Adelaide SA 5000
Ph: 08 8207 7221 or mb 0467 770 793
Email: [email protected]