“Technology can ensure the survival of a rich cultural record, but only if individuals, libraries, archives, and other institutions learn to effectively digitize, organize, and preserve their unique collections. Personal Archiving studies this topic from an impressive range of stakeholder perspectives, providing eloquent rationale and a wealth of practical advice.” 

—Carol Tenopir, Chancellor’s Professor, School of Information Sciences, University of Tennessee

 

This multi-authored work offers one of the first and most robust explorations of the emerging field of personal digital archiving. Editor Donald T. Hawkins and his expert contributors cover a range of innovative projects and practical topics: archiving individual and family histories; new and nascent services and software products; social media and email applications; legal issues including digital inheritance and privacy; evolving formats and media considerations; academic research projects; Library of Congress initiatives; the pioneering role of the Internet Archive; research at Microsoft; and case studies of digital archiving in practice. Hawkins and his contributors are passionate about personal archiving, their enthusiasm matched only by their expertise in this must-read text for genealogists, historians, archivists, librarians, collectors, creators, and anyone with a mass of digital information they want to organize and preserve.

 

“This thorough examination of the world of digital archiving is an excellent resource for anyone, personally or professionally, who is responsible for preserving their personal and collective stories. It emphasizes the importance of capturing and preserving our stories and the resulting complications, particularly since the digital realm is so impermanent."

—Cherilyn P. Fiory, director, Upper Dublin (PA) Public Library