Measuring Progress: Recent Developments in Digital Preservation in the Library Community

Abstract

The article notes that over the last decade digital preservation has changed from a niche subject to an integrated part of library organization. It summarizes the results of a survey conducted in 2005 by the Koninklijke Bibliotheek, national library of the Netherlands, on best practice in digital preservation, which involved 15 national libraries. As well as the essential technical solutions, the need for the creation of preservation policy plans emerged from the survey as crucial to the whole digital preservation process. The article also describes important developments since the survey was conducted. It shows how best practice is evolving into de facto standards and identifies the beginnings of commercial interest in the marketing of tools for digital preservation.