Managing Electronic Public Records

Recognizing Perils and Avoiding Pitfalls

Threats to Digital Files, cont'd.

Obsolescence of Hardware and Software

Another effect of constantly evolving technology is the rapidity with which hardware and software become obsolete. This means not only that offices must work to maintain the most efficient software and hardware, but also that we work to ensure access to older records that have been created with these out-of-date tools. When software or hardware changes, will you still be able to access those older files? Do you still have Betamax tapes, or even VHS tapes? How about a Betamax deck or a VCR?

When talking about software, there are a few common phrases that might be thrown around that make a big difference:

• Proprietary: Proprietary software is computer software which the creator has restricted in terms of use, modification, or distribution. Microsoft Office is proprietary and each user must have a license to use the software.
• Open source: Open-source software is computer software whose source code is made publicly available for collaboration, modification, and distribution. Mozilla Firefox, an Internet browser, is open source.
• Freeware: Freeware is computer software that is available for use at no cost, but remains proprietary to the creator. Adobe Acrobat Reader software, used to view PDF files, is freeware.
• Backward compatible: Backward-compatible software provides the functionality of an older version to enable access to older data created using the earlier version of software. Microsoft Office 2007 is backward compatible with Office 2003 files.

File Formats

File formats are often associated with the software that creates them. For example, .doc files are created by Microsoft Word. Some file formats are non-proprietary, which means they can be created, used, and modified by a variety of software and are not created exclusively for use with one program. An example of a non-proprietary file format is .txt, which can be read in Microsoft Word, but also in free programs like Notepad, or Open Office.

Best	Medium	Worst
XML (.xml)	CSS (.css)
Plain Text (.txt)	Rich Text (.rtf)	Word (.doc/.docx) ***
XHTML/XSL	HTML 4.x
PDF/A-1	PDF with embedded fonts	PDF with external fonts
TIFF (.tif)	JPEG (.jpg)	GIF (.gif)

 

This chart lists common file formats and sorts them based on their appropriateness for storage.

Generally the file formats to the left have a better chance of being able to last into the future than the formats on the right, primarily because they are open source—that is, the source code and specifications have been made openly available. It is difficult to preserve something if you don't know how it has been made, and open-source formats generally have more community involvement in their development and maintenance.

Word has been placed to the right because it is a closed, proprietary system, but there are some caveats. Microsoft Office has been adopted as the official software of state government and is, of course, widely used throughout the rest of the world, so at the Government Records Branch we have an obligation to figure out how to preserve Microsoft Office products even though they use proprietary software.

Notice that there are several versions of PDF on the chart. PDF/A - a is for archival - is a recent development by Adobe that, based on the provision for more metadata and the release of some of its source code, is a more appropriate preservation format than the original PDF format. The International Standards Organization (ISO) has approved pdf/a as an accepted preservation standard for digital files. Adobe has also embedded the fonts—made them an unalterable part of the document, so that the font in which the document was written remains a part of the electronic record, ensuring that preserved records retain the "look and feel" of the original. 

If you have a choice of file format for an archival electronic records series, try to use one from the left. This is particularly important if you are in charge of developing new systems. And remember DCR can always advise you on these matters.

 

toc | return to top | previous page | next page