nestor - Network of Expertise in Long-Term Storage and Long-Term availability of Digital Resources in Germany, Germany
nestor - Network of Expertise in Long-Term Storage and Long-Term availability of Digital Resources in Germany
1. The starting point
Online publications are continually gaining importance. Be they electronic journals, reference databases, abstract services or independent publications (online dissertations, eBooks) - formerly printed works are increasingly being published in the Internet alongside their printed versions. In some sections online documents are already starting to take the upper hand. Results generated in the field of science and research are based on digital primary data and are then themselves published via digital platforms. Considerable amounts are also being invested in the subsequent digitization of printed publications and this is generating huge quantities of digital information. Archives are faced with electronic files which need to be transferred to digital records and stored long-term. Museums are accepting digital artefacts in their collections and, in line with their function as information mediators, are playing an important role in creating and preserving digital objects. The long-term accessibility of all digital resources of lasting value must be preserved - this despite the changing conditions arising from rapid technological development. The aim of saving them as part of our cultural heritage is to facilitate an accurate account of our social, historical, technical and artistic development. Scientific work is always based on existing findings. The long-term accessibility of digital resources is therefore essential to ensure that our educational, scientific and economic systems remain competitive.
2. Our goals
nestor, the advisor of the Greeks in Troy, stands as symbol for the advisory and supporting function of the network of expertise in long-term archiving and long-term availability. The acronym nestor was taken from the English version of the official BMBF project name "Network of Expertise in long-term STOrage and long-term availability of digital Resources in Germany".
Mission:
The aim of nestor is to secure the preservation of digital resources in Germany and to work with others internationally to secure our global digital memory and knowledge base.
The expertise required for the range of tasks involved in the "long-term archiving of digital resources" is devolved upon a broad range of people in a large number of institutions, organisations and companies. nestor aims to create an information and communication platform to bring together existing activities related to the long-term archiving of digital resources, and to propose further measures. nestor wants to create a durable cooperative infrastructure which bundles a wide variety of complementary skills which can be developed and exploited.
nestor also aims to produce a cross-institutional division-of-labour plan which makes proposals for the effective collaboration of all institutions and organisations involved in long-term archiving.
nestor creates a range-spreading team-work concept and wants to compile suggestions for the effective and economic co-operation of all institutions and organizations involved with tasks of long-term archiving. Also the development of standards is considered.
3. The tasks of nestor
• to make expertise and information available
nestor wants to make distributed expertise visible and accesible. It wants to collect information and guidelines to technical, organizational and legal aspects of the long-term storage of digital resources.
• to make co-operation possible
nestor wants to include and support libraries, archives, museums, data centers and others with the solution of the common problem: Regarding the complex questions in long-term archiving of digital resources cooperative solutions have to be found.
• to present models of procedures and best practises
nestor wants to present and bring into discussion organizational and technical models of procedure which are suitable and enduring for the long-term archiving of digital resources.
• to establish standards
nestor wants to forward the development of standards by representing Germany in international standardisation forums and -committees
• to build awareness
nestor wants to strengthen the consciousness of the important and urgent topic in the general public as well as among experts, introducing the discourse about "Information Life Cycle Management".
• to transmit the aims of long-term preservation
starting from 2006 nestor will put additional emphasis on scientific and medical co-operation as well as on technological approaches like e-science and grid computing in order to bring them together with the aims of long-term preservation of digital documents.
• to prepare a durable future organization
nestor will prepare concepts for an enduring organisational form, which plans to coordinate and represent effectively the interests of long-term preservation of digital resources in Germany after the end of the second project phase in August 2009.
4. Who is adressed?
• Institutions involved in long-term preservation and archiving of digital resources
• Individuals, who have authority and experience in the matter
• Producers of digital resources working in science, economics and administration
• Users of digital resources
• Sponsoring institutions supporting master plans or single project activities
• Foreign institutions, organizations and projects, which are active in the field of long-term archiving of digital resources
• Commercial services and industrial partners, which offer labour or products for long-term archiving
5. The project's partners
Project partners of nestor are:
• Deutsche Nationalbibliothek
• Niedersächsische Staats- und Universitätsbibliothek Göttingen
• Computer- und Medienservice und Universitätsbibliothek der Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin
• Bayerische Staatsbibliothek, München
• Fernuniversität in Hagen, Fachbereich Informatik
• Institut für Museumsforschung
• Bundesarchiv
6. Our sponsor
nestor is a subproject of the "Kompetenznetzwerk neue Dienste, Standardisierung, Metadaten" [Network of expertise for New services, standardisation, meta data] supported by the Bundesministerium für Bildung und Forschung (BMBF) [German Federal Ministry for education and research].
The monetary amount ranges to approx. 1,500,000 EUR during the period from September 2006 until August 2009 - following the first project phase of June 2003 to June 2006.
7. Publications, results
Press releases http://www.langzeitarchivierung.de/presse (in German only)
Folder/Flyer http://www.langzeitarchivierung.de/downloads/oeff/nestor-flyer.pdf
Studies, guides, workshops (see: the appropriate columns on http://www.langzeitarchivierung.de) (in German only)
8. Contact
nestor - Kompetenznetzwerk Langzeitarchivierung
Dr. Mathias Jehn
c/o Deutsche Nationalbibliothek
Adickesallee 1
D-60322 Frankfurt am Main
Telefon: +49-69-1525-1141
Telefax: +49-69-1525-1010
[email protected]
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