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Since FY15, we have been experimenting and developing workflows and procedures for working with electronic files. As of now (early FY17) , most legacy carriers have been imaged, and digital archivists are making electronic files ready for processing shortly after collections are accessioned. WeAs a department, we're still feeling out what to do, why, and how when it comes to working with electronic files. As each collection is worked with, we gain more experience and expertise, which can help to revisit and revise our current guidelines and workflows. Please provide feedback on the process, and suggestions as to how to improve this documentation, to your team lead and/or Jen Weintraub.
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What follows are suggestions for approaching appraisal and processing of electronic files removed from carriers.
This is based on Susan Earle's July 2015 work with the Records of the HRPBA Oral History project, and on Cat Holbrook's work with the Mary Bunting Institute records in fall 2015. Every collection is, as we know, DIFFERENT (!) and workflows for different kinds of records and situations will vary. See below for how this workflow worked with different models of collections.
APPRAISAL:
Before viewing the files, you should have already thought through the set of questions the digital archivists have posed.
Determine what kinds of files these are. Are they closely related to the paper files? Are they transcripts, drafts, diary entries?
Do you know who created these files? (if not, perhaps that information can be determined from metadata).
Do they have an intrinsic arrangement? Did they come on disks or other carriers with clear names? Are documents arranged in folders? Do they have folder titles that make sense?
If you believe these files are possibly exactly the same as paper records in the collection, is there value to keeping them in electronic format? Weigh the possibility of time-consuming matching against access and restriction issues. For example, if the born-digital file will be restricted for 50 years, it may be worth your time to check to see if it is in fact a duplicate, since keeping dark digital files may be complex.Do you know who created these files? (if not, perhaps that information can be determined from metadata).
If you're fuzzy on unsure or have questions about what files to keep or what to discard, discuss with your team lead and the digital archivists. Familiarize yourself with some different models of treatment and description that might assist you in figuring out what to keep and how to arrange itfiles.
PROCESS
PROCESS (particularly if and how to arrange):
Determine what files you want to keep, and work with the digital archivists to use bookmarks in FTK or in Quickview so you can work with just the files you want to keep.
Describe electronic files in the finding aid. If they are related to paper files, intermingle them. If it seems more appropriate to have an entire series of electronic records, that's fine too.
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Some things to consider when determining how to describe the files:
Are the files restricted in any way?
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Are they arranged in meaningful folders on their carriers? Or are they just put on the carrier as a means of transport?
2. Access considerations. Can these files be linked through the finding aid? (Are there restrictions, has the donor agreed that material can be made available online?)
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MODELS of arrangement and description
This is based on Susan Earle's July 2015 work with the Records of the HRPBA Oral History project, and on Cat Holbrook's work with the Mary Bunting Institute records in fall 2015. Every collection is, as we know, DIFFERENT (!) and workflows for different kinds of records and situations will vary. See below for how this workflow worked with different models of collections.
MODEL A: Born digital files are closely related to the paper files, and (due to their file uniformity and small number) can easily be transformed into PDF/As, deposited into the DRS, and linked out through the finding aid.
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