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Web Archiving Trail


About this trail | FAQs about Web Archiving | Beginners Trail | Other trails


About this trail

This trail is designed for individuals with little or no prior knowledge of this subject. The trail provides links to the major initiatives and resources that illustrate the different approaches to Web archiving. This trail is a subset of the full PADI database.


FAQs about Web Archiving


Why is Web archiving becoming so important?

The Web is fast growing and constantly changing and it is this fluid nature that makes archiving important. At the same time, the dynamic and ephemeral quality of electronic information makes it difficult to capture and control. Web archiving is dependent on the creation of appropriate storage systems that will guarantee preservation, maintenance and access over the long-term. The following site offers links to many types of introductory resources on Web archiving.

Web Archiving Bibliography
This bibliography from the Austrian Online Archive includes links to sites on international and national initiatives and to articles, workshops, meetings and subject gateways.


What role does Web archiving play in digital preservation?

The archiving of Web resources is a significant process in the overall preservation of electronic records. Archiving involves the selection, capture and provision of access to digital records in their current format so that they will remain accessible as technology changes. It is closely intertwined with the complementary practice of preservation, which is concerned with the complexities of managing digital records for the long-term.

The following resource is an easy to read introduction to the main Web archiving issues -
Andreas Rauber and Andreas Aschenbrenner
Part of Our Culture is Born Digital : On Effors to Preserve it for Future Generations


What are some of the challenges for digital archiving?

The ever-expanding size of the Web and the dynamic and transient nature of its content pose special challenges for digital archiving. Questions such as which versions of Web resources to collect, how they will be downloaded or harvested, and the maintenance of site and link functionality need to be addressed, as well as how the data can be stored and accessed for the future. A good summary of initiatives which are examining solutions these problems is provided in the following resource.

Michael Day
Collecting and Preserving the World Wide Web : a Feasibility Study Undertaken for the JISC and Wellcome Trust.

Legal issues also pose unique challenges to web archiving. This paper examines the key legal issues in the United Kingdom as well as surveying EU countries, Australia and the USA. The paper illustrates the varying and often complex approaches to copyright, legal deposit, content liability and data protection in these jurisdictions.

Andrew Charlesworth: Legal issues relating to the archiving of Internet resources in the UK, EU, USA and Australia. A study undertaken for the JISC and Wellcome Trust. Version 1.0 - 25 February 2003.


What is harvesting and are there any advantages for archiving comprehensively or selectively?

In response to the Web archiving challenge two main strategies have emerged. The first approach is the collection of websites and online resources in their entirety. The comprehensive harvesting undertaken by the Internet Archive is an example of this. The second approach is the retention of selective site or document 'snapshots'. An example of this approach is the selective collection model adopted by the PANDORA project.

The following resource describes PANDORA and the roles of national approaches in web harvesting
Margaret E. Phillips
PANDORA, Australia's Web Archive, And The Digital Archiving System That Supports It

The following resource illustrates the national approach to Web harvesting in the United States. Topic based collection such as the 2002 Winter Olympics are used as examples.
Abigail Grotke and Gina Jones
Web Preservation Projects at Library of Congress

Harvesting involves the use of robots to automatically retrieve Web materials for future retention. It is especially suitable for the collection of large amounts of material but does not offer a high degree of control over gathered data. Harvesting is not appropriate for structured websites which need to be actively collected or deposited if their usability is to be maintained. Selection of Web materials for archiving is resource-intensive but saves on storage, and allows for more control over collected resources and the option of adding descriptive information to enhance access.
A further introduction to harvesting can be found in the following resource -
Archiving the Web - European Experiences.


Where can I find more information on this topic?

For more information on Web archiving, see the PADI archiving topic page, or, search the PADI database using 'web archiving' as a search term.


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