Digital Curation

This second edition of Digital Curation outlines the essential concepts and techniques that are crucial to preserving the longevity of digital resources.

The first edition of this textbook provided an in-depth explanation of the entire digital curation lifecycle, from creation to appraisal to preservation to organisation/access to transformation, and set a benchmark for both thoroughness and clarity. In this revamped and expanded second edition, international authorities Gillian Oliver and Ross Harvey have widened the scope to address continuing developments in the strategies, technological approaches, and activities that are part of this rapidly changing field.

Useful as both a teaching text and day-to-day working guide, this book outlines the essential concepts and techniques that are crucial to preserving the longevity of digital resources and covers topics including:

• The scope and incentives of digital curation, detailing Digital Curation Centre’s (DCC) lifecycle model as well as the Data Curation Continuum.
• Key requirements for digital curation, from description and representation to planning and collaboration.
• The value and utility of metadata.
• Creating an appraisal and selection policy for digital objects that considers the needs of producers and consumers.
• The paradigm shift by institutions towards cloud computing and its impact on costs, storage, and other key aspects of digital curation.
• The quality and security of data.
• New and emerging data curation resources, including innovative digital repository software and digital forensics tools.
• Mechanisms for sharing and reusing data, with expanded sections on open access, open data, and open standards initiatives.
• Processes to ensure that data are preserved and remain usable over time.

This book will be essential reading for any information professional, records manager, or archivist who appraises, selects, organises, or maintains digital resources and has responsibilities as a digital curator.