*Apologies for cross posting*

RLG and OCLC Issue Final Report on
Trusted Digital Repositories: Attributes and Responsibilities

May 7, 2002 - RLG and OCLC have released a new report on long-term
preservation of and access to research materials in digital form. "Trusted
Digital Repositories: Attributes and Responsibilities" (
http://www.rlg.org/longterm/repositories.pdf) is available at the RLG Web
site. (From the UK/JANET sites go to
http://www.rlg.ac.uk/longterm/repositories.pdf)

This report is primarily intended for cultural institutions such as
libraries, archives, museums, and scholarly publishers and is specifically
aimed at those with traditional or legal responsibilities for the
preservation of cultural heritage. It is written to aid senior
administrators as well as those implementing digital archiving services.

Following a short historical introduction, the report presents a brief
definition of "trusted digital repositories," provides some examples of the
circumstances in which institutions are undertaking their creation, and
speaks to the nature and achievement of trust. It addresses the seven
attributes such repositories must have and discusses requisite
responsibilities at both the higher organizational/curatorial level and the
operational level. Finally, the report looks at how repositories can be
certified and summarizes seven key recommendations.

An appendix to the RLG-OCLC report provides technical overviews of the
"Reference Model for an Open Archival Information System" (OAIS); - a
common framework for describing and comparing architectures and operations
of digital archives. (Compliance with this model is a defining attribute of
a trusted digital repository. In January 2002 RLG established an OAIS
resources page and discussion list at its Web site to assist implementers.)
An operational responsibilities checklist, a glossary, and selected
additional resources round out the report.

"Trusted Digital Repositories: Attributes and Responsibilities" benefits
from international discussion and excellent feedback on a draft that RLG
and OCLC released for community comment in August 2001. Stakeholders in the
effort to preserve digital materials were urged to contact RLG program
officer Robin Dale with their comments on the earlier "Attributes of a
Trusted Digital Repository: Meeting the Needs of Research Resources." Dale
continues to welcome comments and ideas on the final publication.

Colin Webb, director of the Preservation Services Branch of the National
Library of Australia, and a working group member, says: "Just how to ensure
reliable access to digital information over the long term seems to raise
questions from all directions. It's vital that we take the time and effort
to focus on discrete sets of questions - such as what a trustworthy digital
repository would look like and what it would do. In this way we lay down
foundations for effective action. It's also very important that this report
has been accomplished by an international, collaborative effort drawing on
perspectives from a range of working environments, experiences, and
agendas."

"The completed report gives us a shared basis for further coordinated work
with our members and other like-minded institutions," says Dale. "For
example, RLG is particularly interested in the design and implementation of
a certification program for trusted digital repositories. This will produce
tools and guidance for institutions responsible for digital collections -
whether they are creating their own repositories, working with publishers,
or planning to contract for third-party services."

"This report will be very useful to our members as they consider
digitization and preservation issues," says Meg Bellinger, vice president,
OCLC Digital & Preservation Resources. "It has distilled and confirmed some
key concepts, and can serve as a guide for institutions addressing the
digital archiving question."

The expert working group charged by RLG and OCLC to develop the information
and consensus embodied in the report comprised Neil Beagrie, Joint
Information Systems Committee (UK); Meg Bellinger, OCLC Digital &
Preservation Resources; Robin Dale, RLG; Marianne Doerr, Bayerische
Staatsbibliothek; Margaret Hedstrom, University of Michigan; Anne Kenney,
Cornell University; Maggie Jones, Cedars Project (CURL Exemplars in Digital
Archives, UK); Catherine Lupovici, Bibliothèque national de France; Kelly
Russell, Cedars Project (CURL Exemplars in Digital Archives, UK); Colin
Webb, National Library of Australia; and Deborah Woodyard, British Library.

_________________________________________________

Robin L. Dale
RLG Member Programs & Initiatives
1200 Villa Street
Mountain View, CA 94041-1100

Ph: +1 650-691-2238
Fax: +1 650.964.0943
Email: [log in to unmask]