National Library of Australia  - Gateways

ISSN 1443-0568 | no. 73 | February 2005


Archiving Web Resources

RLG president Jim Michalko (centre) speaking with Beth Dulabahn, Library of Congress (right) and Tom Delsey, Consultant (left) at pre-dinner drinks, Conference Dinner, Parliament House, Wednesday 10 November 2004

Damian McDonald
RLG president Jim Michalko (centre) speaking with Beth Dulabahn, Library of Congress (right) and Tom Delsey, Consultant (left) at pre-dinner drinks, Conference Dinner, Parliament House, Wednesday 10 November 2004

Pictures Collection, nla.int-nl39393-dmc131
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More than 200 delegates from 21 countries, representing libraries, archives, museums, galleries, and government agencies, gathered from 9 to 11 November 2004 at the National Library of Australia for the conference, ‘Archiving Web Resources: Issues for Cultural Heritage Institutions’.

The conference examined the cultural impact of the Web and how a number of sectors are using it to extend their business in the digital age. There were papers from experts on geospatial data, science, sound and film, and digital art.

The implications for cultural collecting institutions were considered by the Research Libraries Group in the United States and the Bibliothèque nationale de France. A number of speakers addressed the question ‘What should we collect and how should we do it?’ Presentations from the national libraries of Sweden and Australia, the Library of Congress, the Internet Archive, the Institute of Chinese Studies at Leiden University, and Cornell University described the strengths and weaknesses of the approaches to web archiving that have been developed so far. The first decade of web archiving has seen a number of national libraries set up and run individual web archiving programs, and each has learned a great deal from these first efforts. However, there is now a very strong imperative to come together to share information and to collaborate on the development of tools, methods and technical infrastructure, that will lead to interoperable national collections of web resources. The Web has no bounds, and neither should our archives.

Eleven national libraries, including the National Library of Australia, and the Internet Archive formed the International Internet Preservation Consortium (IIPC) <http://netpreserve.org/about/index.php> in 2003 to mutually solve the many problems inherent in collecting and providing long-term access to online publications and websites. It has already achieved some very practical outcomes in the first 18 months of its operation. The Steering Committee of the IIPC met at the National Library during the week of the conference and, in a separate meeting, an important new project to collaborate on the development of a web archiving tool was delineated.

The final day of the conference looked at architectures and business models for collaboration, and research programs that are leading the way forward.

The National Library of Australia hosted the event and was well placed to do so. Through its work on PANDORA, Australia’s Web Archive <http://pandora.nla.gov.au/index.html>, and through its active participation in the work of the IIPC, the Library is well regarded internationally for its expertise in the field of web archiving. The conference brought many experts on the various aspects of web archiving to Canberra and enabled them to share ideas. It was a very fertile meeting ground, with many links and new alliances being forged that will undoubtedly result in further developments in knowledge and technology within the coming months and years.

For further information contact Margaret Phillips, Director Digital Archiving, mphillips@nla.gov.au

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