Summary of Information Obtained from the National Survey of Publishers of Australian Physical-Format Digital Publications
The purpose of this survey was to collect information from publishers of Australian digital publications which will assist libraries in managing these resources. This survey essentially covered CD-ROMs and floppy disks. CD audio, DAT and video were not considered at this stage. Information gathered in this survey was used as background to a consultative meeting intended to further the development of a national strategy for digital library resources.
Surveys were sent to 270 publishers selected from The Directory of Australian CD-ROMs and The Australian Multimedia Catalogue. The questionnaire was designed to discover publishers' intentions about period of availability of the publication, the descriptive information provided with the product, the long-term availability of the information content of the product and the archival intention of the publishers. The following results are based on the 43 surveys that were completed and returned.
- Expected Commercial Availability of Products
- Expected Accessibility of the Information Content of Products
- Plans for Migrating the Information Content of Physical-Format Products to Other Formats
- Desirability of Preserving the Information Content of Products for Long-Term
- Responsibility for Providing Long-Term Access to the Information Content of Physical-Format Publications
- Challenges Posed by the Task of Preservation
- Assisting Legal Deposit Libraries to Preserve Access to the Information Content of Products
- Other Parties that May Assist in Preserving Access to Your Products
- Information Regularly Provided in the Packaging and Labelling of Products
1. Expected Commercial Availability of Products
56% of respondents expected their CD-ROM products to be available for less than 5 years; 85% expected their floppy disk products to be available for less than 5 years. This is a relatively short commercial life span of these products.
| Expected Commercial Availability |
CD-ROM Products |
Floppy Disk Products |
| 0-2 years | 8 (20%) | 4 (31%) |
| 3-5 years | 15 (36%) | 7 (54%) |
| 6-10 years | 14 (34%) | 1 (8%) |
| >10 years | 4 (10%) | 1 (8%) |
Comments
Comments were of two main types:
- the life expectancy of the CD-ROM or floppy disk was seen by some to be irrelevant because respondents expected;
- an alternative medium to evolve or expected to move to online publication;
- the life-expectancy of much of the information was considered by some respondents to be too short to worry;
- about the longevity of the medium.
2. Expected Accessibility of the Information Content of Products
The lifespan of the information content is reported to be much longer, although it is important to note that 78% of the respondents did not expect the content to be available after 20 years.
| Expected Accessibility | CD-ROM Products |
Floppy Disk Products |
| 0-5 years | 5 (12%) | 9 (53%) |
| 6-20 years | 21 (50%) | 5 (29%) |
| >20 years | 10 (24%) | 0 (0%) |
| not sure/did not answer | 6 (14%) | 3 (18%) |
3. Plans for Migrating the Information Content of Physical-Format Products to Other Formats
88% of publishers planned to migrate information to the Internet. 19% planned to migrate information to paper. Some respondents indicated that their products are released on both electronic media and paper, or have already been migrated from print format. Some respondents intended migrating to more than one format.
| Alternative Format | Number of Respondents
Planning to Migrate |
| Internet | 38 (88%) |
| Printed form | 8 (19%) |
| Other | 4 (9%) |
| No/did not answer | 4 (9%) |
4. Desirability of Preserving the Information Content of Products for Long-Term (ie > 5 years)
35 respondents (81%) desired long term preservation. Comments indicated that this would depend on the content. Some respondents felt that a lot of what they published is transient information that requires updating annually and is only of interest when current.
5. Responsibility for Providing Long-Term Access to the Information Content of Physical-Format Publications
37% of respondents indicated an intention to provide long-term access to the information content on their products (length of time not specified). 86% thought libraries were the appropriate body to assume this responsibility.
| Responsibility of Publisher? | Responsibility of Library? | |
| Yes | 16 (37%) | 37 (86%) |
| No | 25 (58%) | 5 (12%) |
| Not sure/did not answer | 2 (5%) | 1 (2%) |
Comments
- Some respondents again noted that their information was important only when current so there was no need to preserve it.
- Some respondents noted the difficulty and expense of the preservation task and indicated they could only do this if it were practical, commercially viable, or of some other benefit to the corporation.
- The difficulties associated with preserving the hardware, changes in business, licensing, and the rights of authors were noted.
- Some respondents identified the use of master copies as a possible aid in preservation.
- Archives and content providers were others that were identified as perhaps having a responsibility for the preservation task
6. Challenges Posed by the Task of Preservation
Most respondents saw hardware and software obsolescence as the major challenges facing those tasked to preserve access to the information.
| Challenge to Preservation | Number of Respondents Identifying this as a Challenge |
| Obsolescence of hardware | 34 (79%) |
| Obsolescence of software | 28 (65%) |
| Copying restrictions | 10 (23%) |
| Security devices | 7 (16%) |
| Other challenges | 7(16%) |
| Did not answer | 2 (5%) |
Comments
Issues raised in comments included:
- changes in technology are more significant than the longevity of the medium itself
- obsolescence was noted as already being a problem
- not only machines become extinct but so too does the knowledge of how to operate them
- standardisation may help
- software is not as much of a problem as hardware obsolescence
- the need for copyright law to clarify the situation in relation to copying restrictions
- the need for measures to protect copyright
- cost as a major challenge
- subscription expiry was seen as problematic
7. Assisting Legal Deposit Libraries to Preserve Access to the Information Content of Products
72% of respondents were interested in assisting legal deposit libraries to preserve long-term access.
Interest in Assisting Libraries Preserve Access
to Information Content of ProductsNumber of Respondents Interested 31 (72%) Not interested 12 (28%)
Form of Assistance Number of Respondents Publishing to standards 9 (21%) Aiming for backwards compatibility 15 (35%) Not hard coding possible variations 11 (26%) Others (museums, government, archives) 8 (19%) Did not answer/comments only 8 (19%) Comments
- Expense is an issue
- Some expressed need for further information - what is involved?
Ways in which publishers/creators could help libraries:
- Providing copyright clearance
- providing access to underlying statistical data sets
- migrating the information
- publishing detailed technical specifications
Publishers/creators would require assurances from libraries in the following areas:
- copyright maintenance
- minimal cost
licensing agreements governing all use - standalone use of legal deposit items
- accurate representation of content; use of most current version
- security and intellectual property protection
8. Other Parties that May Assist in Preserving Access to Your Products
Other Parties Number of Respondents Software providers 15 (35%) Manufacturers 11 (26%) Stockshop footage libraries 2 (5%) Image banks 5 (12%) Other content providers 2 (5%) Other 5 (12%) Did not answer 22 (51%) Comments on how this could be done:
- by maintaining availability of operating systems software, access to required software, archives of hardware and software and information about them.
- by building in backwards compatibility
- by retaining back copies for sale
9. Information Regularly Provided in the Packaging and Labelling of Products
There was considerable commonality between the data desired by libraries and data provided by publishers.
Hardware platform 39 (91%) Processor speed 27 (63%) RAM 35 (81%) Hard disk space 26 (60%) CD-ROM drive speed 21 (49%) Type of monitor 21 (49%) Resolution 23 (53%) Sound card (+ version number) 17 (40%) Operating system (+ version number) 30 (70%) Other software (+ version number) 16 (37%) Software drivers (+ version number) 9 (21%) Minimum requirements for operation 34 (79%) Recommended requirements for operation 25 (58%) Information on whether software is supplied 8 (19%) Information on whether software is not supplied 3 (7%) Requirements for hybrid discs 14 (32%) Requirements for multi-platform discs 14 (32%) Year of manufacture 34 (79%) Copyright warning 35 (81%) Licensing conditions 31 (72%) Other information (installation instructions, ISSN,
customer support number, logos, usage guide)6 (14%) Did not answer 2 (5%) Comments or queries can be directed to:
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Charu Sood
National Initiatives and Collaboration Branch
National Library of Australia
Telephone: +61 (0)2 6262 1571
Facsmile: +61 (0)2 6273 4535
E-mail: csood@nla.gov.au
Return to the National Consultative MeetingLast updated 12 November 1997
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