Long-Term Preservation of At-Risk Digital Geospatial Data: A Cooperative Agreement with Library of Congress

Steve MorrisNCSU Libraries

Zsolt Nagy NC Center for Geographic Information & Analysis

Note: Percentages based on the actual number of respondents to each question 2

Project ContextPartnership between NCSU Libraries and NC Center for Geographic Information & Analysis$520,000 fundingFocus on state and local geospatial content in North Carolina (state demonstration)Address NC OneMap objective: “Historic and temporal data will be maintained and available.”One of eight projects in the first NDIIPP funding round: “Building a Network of Partners”

Note: Percentages based on the actual number of respondents to each question 3

Targeted Content

Resource TypesGIS “vector” (point/line/polygon) dataDigital orthophotography Digital mapsTabular data (e.g. assessment data)

Content ProducersMostly state, local, regional agenciesSome university, not-for-profit, commercialSelected local federal projects

Note: Percentages based on the actual number of respondents to each question 4

Risks to Digital Geospatial Data

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.dwg

.dgn

.bsb

.bil

.sid

Note: Percentages based on the actual number of respondents to each question 5

Risks to Digital Geospatial Data

Producer focus on current dataArchiving data does not guarantee “permanent access”

Future support of data formats in questionNeed to migrate formats or allow for emulation

Data failure“Bit rot”, media failure

Preservation metadata requirementsDescriptive, administrative, technical, DRM

Shift to “streaming data” for access

Note: Percentages based on the actual number of respondents to each question 6

Time series – vector dataParcel Boundary Changes 2001-2004, North Raleigh, NC

Note: Percentages based on the actual number of respondents to each question 7

Time series – Ortho imageryVicinity of Raleigh-Durham International Airport 1993-2002

Note: Percentages based on the actual number of respondents to each question 8

Tabular data (combined with vector data)

Note: Percentages based on the actual number of respondents to each question 9

Today’s geospatial data as tomorrow’s cultural heritage

Note: Percentages based on the actual number of respondents to each question 10

Earlier NCSU Acquisition Efforts

NCSU University Extension project 2000-2001

Target: County/city data in eastern NC“Digital rescue” not “digital preservation”

Project learning outcomesConfirmed concerns about long term accessNeed for efficient inventory/acquisitionWide range in rights/licensingNeed to work within statewide infrastructureAcquired experience; unanticipated collaboration

Note: Percentages based on the actual number of respondents to each question 11

Exploring Approaches to Sharing Data County and City GIS Directories

Note: Percentages based on the actual number of respondents to each question 12

Content Identification and Selection

Work from NC OneMap Data Inventory

Combine with inventory information from various state agencies and from previous NCSU efforts

Develop methodology for selecting from among “early,” “middle,” and “late” stage products

Develop criteria for time series development

Investigate use of emerging Open Geospatial Consortium technologies in data identification

Note: Percentages based on the actual number of respondents to each question 13

Content AcquisitionWork from NC OneMap Data Sharing Agreements as a starting point (the “blanket”)Secure individual agreements (the “quilt”) Investigate use of OGC technologies in captureUse METS (Metadata Encoding and Transfer Standard) as a metadata wrapper

Bundle data files, metadata, ancillary documentationSupplement FGDC metadata with additional administrative, technical, and descriptive metadataEncode rights (Digital Rights Management – DRM)Links to services

Note: Percentages based on the actual number of respondents to each question 14

Partnership Building

Work within context of the NC OneMap initiativeExplore state, local, federal partnerships

Defined characteristic: “Historic and temporal data will be maintained and available”Advisory Committee drawn from the NC Geographic Information Coordinating Council subcommittees

Seek external partnersNational States Geographic Information Council FGDC Historical Data Committee

… more

Note: Percentages based on the actual number of respondents to each question 15

Content Retention and Transfer

Ingest into Dspace open source digital repository software

Look more generically at the issue of putting geospatial content into digital repositories

Investigate re-ingest into a second platformStart to define format migration paths

Special problem: geodatabases

Purse long term solutionRoles of data producing agencies, state agencies; NC OneMap; NCSU

Note: Percentages based on the actual number of respondents to each question 16

End of Project Outcomes

Components which become part of state geospatial data infrastructure

NC OneMap objectives for long term access

Start a dialog about digital preservation; create stories about digital preservation that can be told in geospatial industry venues

Components which NCSU Libraries continues for its own business reasons

High user demand for local data, historical versions

Components which are not sustainable

Note: Percentages based on the actual number of respondents to each question 17

Areas for Collaboration and Partnership

Identifying data for inclusion in the repository Sharing inventories of data holdingsDiscussing data format strategies Sharing ideas about archiving approaches and architecturesDiscussing strategies for preservation of geodatabase contentsSharing and identifying concerns about rights issues, liability, etc.

Note: Percentages based on the actual number of respondents to each question 18

Questions?

Contact:

Steve Morris

Head of Digital Library Initiatives

NCSU Libraries

Steven_Morris@ncsu.edu

Phone: (919) 515-1361