Library War Episode 2 (New Dark Age)
No, the next Dark Age might be digital or more specifically the the lack of backwards compatibility in digital formats which was a great concern around the start of the millennium.
My first personal experience with the Digital Dark Age was about a year ago when I had a custom PC built. I had wanted a 3.5 floppy drive in case in case I needed another place to boot from if the optical drive failed. My PC was held for over two weeks because the company building the damn thing couldn’t find a drive. The young man (I can say that now) on the phone was rather perplexed at my request and when I explained why he suggested I use a USB drive to boot up from instead, which I conceded and never did get the floppy drive.
http://www.bootdisk.com/pendrive.htm
I tossed out my collection of floppies that day, the day the floppies died.
As so we have a bit of a paradox, something digital which somehow has the promise of immortality finding a “True Death” as in the terms of True Blood.
Consider “It is 2045, he suggests, and his grandchildren are exploring the attic of his old house when they come across a CD-ROM and a letter, which explains that the disk contains a document that provides directions to obtaining the family fortune. The children are excited. “But they’ve never seen a CD before – except in old movies – and, even if they found a suitable disk drive, how will they run the software necessary to interpret the information on the disk? How can they read my obsolete digital document?” http://www.smh.com.au/news/technology/the-digital-dark-age/2005/09/22/1126982184206.html
And it is not just imaginary fortunes at risk, it’s everything around us that is digital. I get that I’m supposed to buy the game again, but NASA (some of the smartest people on this rock) lost data should come as a surprise. Never mind our time capsule in the yard.
Owning digital content comes with a few issues.
- Digital preservation is very expensive [because]
- File formats become obsolete very rapidly [which means that]
- Interventions must occur frequently, ensuring that continuing costs remain high.
- Digital preservation repositories should have very long timescale aspirations,
- Internet-age’ expectations are such that the preserved object must be easily and instantly accessible in the format de jour, and the preserved object must be faithful to the original in all respects.
- http://www.ariadne.ac.uk/issue46/rusbridge/
From ALA
“Digital Preservation
The Association defines digital preservation as policies, strategies and actions that ensure access to digital content over time. Publishers and distributors of content in digital form must address the usability and longevity of their electronic works. The Association encourages publishers to provide metadata that will facilitate the life cycle management of works in digital formats and to deposit digital works in repositories that provide for the long-term persistence and usability of digital content. The Association will work with the publishers to develop guidelines on digital preservation to help ensure that such information will not be lost when publishers can no longer retain and disseminate it.
The Association encourages research on metadata, software, operating systems, and life cycle management techniques that may effect the preservation of digital works.
http://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/alcts/resources/preserv/08alaprespolicy.cfm
”
“Long Definition
Digital preservation combines policies, strategies and actions to ensure the most accurate rendering possible of authenticated content over time, regardless of the challenges of file corruption, media failure and technological change. Digital preservation applies to content that is born digital or converted to digital form.
Digital preservation policies document an organization’s commitment to preserve digital content for future use; specify file formats to be preserved and the level of preservation to be provided; and ensure compliance with standards and best practices for responsible stewardship of digital information.
Digital preservation strategies and actions address content creation, integrity and maintenance.
Content creation includes:
- Clear and complete technical specifications
- Production of reliable master files
- Sufficient descriptive, administrative and structural metadata to ensure future access
- Detailed quality control of processes
- Use of persistent identifiers
Content integrity includes:
- Documentation of all policies, strategies and procedures
- Recorded provenance and change history for all objects
- Verification mechanisms
- Attention to security requirements
- Routine audits
Content maintenance includes:
- A robust computing and networking infrastructure
- Storage and synchronization of files at multiple sites
- Continuous monitoring and management of files
- Programs for refreshing, migration and emulation
- Creation and testing of disaster prevention and recovery plans
- Periodic review and updating of policies and procedures
”
http://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/alcts/resources/preserv/2009def.cfm
But even the present is hard. Webmasters have to work to get sites to look right on different browsers rendered differently because of different browsers with different screen resolutions meaning that we can’t consistently get things to look right. There is a constant updating of programs, operating systems, chips, etc that will never stop.
With eBooks the present got complicated quickly….I nabbed this from Wikipeida.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comparison_of_e-book_formats
Features
|
Format |
DRM support |
Image support |
Table support |
Sound support |
Interactivity support |
Word wrap support |
Embedded annotation support |
Book- marking |
Video support |
||
|
.aeh |
Yes |
Yes |
? |
No |
No |
Yes |
No |
? |
Yes |
? |
|
|
.djvu |
? |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
No |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
? |
|
|
EPUB (IDPF) |
.epub |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes/No[f 1] |
Yes/No[f 1] |
Yes[f 2] |
|
.fb2 |
No |
Yes |
Yes/No[f 3] |
No |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
? |
? |
|
|
.html |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes[f 4] |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
No |
Yes[f 5] |
|
|
.azw |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
? |
|||
|
.lit |
Yes |
Yes |
? |
No |
No |
Yes |
No |
? |
Yes |
? |
|
|
.prc, .mobi |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
? |
|
|
.exe |
Yes |
Yes |
? |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
? |
|
|
.pdb |
Yes |
Yes |
? |
No |
No |
Yes |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
? |
|
|
.txt |
No |
No |
No |
No |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
No |
No |
|
|
.pdb |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
Yes |
? |
|
|
|
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes[f 8] |
|
|
.ps |
No |
Yes |
? |
No |
No |
No |
Yes |
? |
? |
? |
|
|
.rgo |
? |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
No |
Yes |
No |
No |
No |
? |
|
|
.pdb |
Yes |
Yes |
? |
No |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
? |
Yes |
? |
|
|
.tr2, .tr3 |
Yes |
Yes |
? |
No |
No |
Yes |
No |
? |
? |
? |
- ^ a b Depends on the eReader application
- ^ With ePub 3
- ^ Table support added in FictionBook V2.1. Not supported in V2.0
- ^ With HTML 5
- ^ With HTML 5
- ^ Supported in all except 1st Generation Kindle. (Support level is as it is in mobipocket)
- ^ Supported only in kindle for iPhone, iPod, iPad.
- ^ With Flash Embeded
[
|
Reader |
Plain text |
|
ePub |
HTML |
Mobi- Pocket |
Fiction- Book (Fb2) |
DjVu |
Broadband eBook (BBeB)[h 1] |
eReader[h 1] |
WOLF[h 1] |
Tome Raider[h 1] |
Open eBook[h 2] |
|
|
Yes |
No |
No |
No |
Yes |
No |
No |
No |
No |
Yes |
No |
No |
No |
|
|
Yes |
Yes |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
No |
No |
No |
Yes |
No |
No |
No |
|
|
Yes |
Yes |
No[h 3] |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
No |
No |
No |
Yes |
No |
No |
No |
|
|
Amazon Kindle Fire |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
No |
No |
No |
Yes |
No |
No |
No |
|
Android Devices |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
Yes |
No |
Yes[h 4] |
||||
|
Apple iOS Devices |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes[h 4] |
Yes[h 4] |
Yes[h 4] |
No |
Yes[h 4] |
Yes[h 4] |
No |
Yes[h 4] |
Yes[h 4] |
|
Azbooka WISEreader |
Yes |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
No |
No |
No |
No |
No |
No |
|
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
No |
No |
No |
Yes |
No |
No |
No |
No |
|
|
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
No |
No |
No |
No |
No |
No |
No |
No |
|
|
Bookeen Cybook Gen3, Opus |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes[h 5] |
Yes |
Yes[h 5] |
Yes[h 6] |
No |
No |
No |
No |
No |
No |
Yes |
|
COOL-ER Classic |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
No |
No |
No |
No |
No |
No |
|
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
No |
No |
No |
No |
Yes |
No |
No |
No |
No |
|
|
Hanlin e-Reader V3 |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
No |
No |
Yes |
No |
No |
|
Hanvon WISEreader |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
No |
No |
No |
No |
No |
No |
No |
No |
|
iRex iLiad |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
Yes |
No |
Yes |
No |
No |
No |
No |
No |
No |
|
Iriver Story |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
No |
Yes[h 4] |
Yes[h 4] |
No |
No |
No |
No |
No |
No |
|
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
No |
No |
No |
No |
No |
No |
No |
No |
|
|
Nokia N900 |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
No |
No |
No |
No |
Yes |
|
NUUTbook 2 |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
No |
No |
No |
No |
No |
No |
No |
No |
No |
|
OLPC XO, Sugar |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
No |
Yes |
No |
No |
No |
No |
No |
No |
|
Onyx Boox 60 |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
No |
No |
No |
No |
No |
|
Mac OS X |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
? |
Yes |
Yes |
? |
? |
Yes |
|
Windows |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
? |
Yes |
? |
Yes |
Yes[h 7] |
? |
? |
Yes |
|
Pocketbook 301 Plus, 302, 360° |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
No |
No |
No |
No |
No |
|
Sony Reader |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
No |
No |
No |
Yes |
No |
No |
No |
No |
No |
|
Viewsonic VEB612 |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
No |
No |
No |
No |
No |
No |
No |
|
Windows Phone 7 |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
No |
No |
No |
No |
Yes |
No |
No |
No |
- ^ a b c d e Proprietary format
- ^ Predecessor of ePUB
- ^ Yes, if the Duokan alternate Kindle OS (third-party software add-on) is used.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Requires latest firmware
- ^ a b Versions support either ePUB or MobiPocket
- ^ Only ePUB version and with FW 2.0+
- ^ DRM-protected publications are supported as of Kindle for PC v1.3.0
Word. And there are different readers, different apps for phones, different eBook licencing arrangements…you get the point.
But if eBooks are just subscriptions does fighting the Digital Dark Age fall in the hands of libraries? I don’t see how it does.
If everything becomes a service than it is up to those who run the service to preserve. But if “Who controls the past controls the future. Who controls the present controls the past” it means that a lot of the preservation of human history is now in the hands of companies.
http://archive.ifla.org/IV/ifla63/63kuny1.pdf
Hoping that things will end up in public domain and then preserved by the people is a bad idea. Recently “The Supreme Court…upheld Congress’s right to extend copyright protection to millions of books, films and musical compositions by foreign artists that once were free for public use.” http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/supreme-court-copyright-can-be-extended-to-foreign-works-once-in-public-domain/2012/01/18/gIQAbqbr8P_story.html
Another way of looking at this is that world changed and we too are still adjusting to the changes. The Digital Dark Age can be avoided as far as backward compatibility goes. Programmers have to be diligent. Like the Xbox games, there maybe some tomfoolary to get people to shell out more money here and there, but by and large this doesn’t have to be an issue.
But so long as “our content” is rented, the less and less we’ll be thinking of this…
“The American Library Association’s policy on preservation is based on the Association’s mission to enhance learning and ensure access to information for all. The preservation policy has as its goal, promoting the preservation of our cultural heritage and ensuring access to information in a useable and trustworthy form. ALA affirms that the preservation of library resources protects the public’s right to the free flow of information as embodied in the First Amendment to the Constitution and the Library Bill of Rights.
The Association supports the preservation of information disseminated and published in all media and formats. The Association affirms that the preservation of information content and information resources are central to libraries and librarianship. http://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/alcts/resources/preserv/08alaprespolicy.cfm
”
Check out for older versions of software http://www.oldversion.com.
