Archives and the Computer deals with the use of the computer and its systems and programs in archiving data and other related materials. The book covers topics such as the scope of automated systems in archives; systems for records management, archival description, and retrieval; and machine-readable archives. The book also features examples of systems for records management from different institutions such as theTyne and Wear Archive Department, Dyfed Record Office, and the University of Liverpool. Included in the last part are appendices. Appendix A is a directory of archival systems, Appendix B contains guidelines for machine-readable and related records for preservation, and Appendix C covers machine-readable archives. The text is recommended for archivists who would like to know more about the use of computers in archiving of records and other related information.

This practical how-to-do-it guide is ideal for professionals involved in the management of archives and records, especially if they are just starting out or without formal training. The book covers all aspects of recordkeeping and archives management. It follows the records’ journey from creation, through the application of classification and access techniques, evaluation for business, legal and historical value and finally to destruction or preservation and access in the archive. Based on the internationally renowned training days run by the author and her business partner, The No-nonsense Guide to Archives and Recordkeeping deals with records and archives in all formats. It utilizes checklists, practical exercises, sample documentation, case studies and helpful diagrams to ensure a very accessible and pragmatic approach, allowing anyone to get to grips with the basics quickly. The book is divided into four main work areas: - current records: including creation, filing, classification and security - records management: including aims, risks, planning, preparation and delivery - archives management: including collecting policies, intellectual property rights, appraisal, digitization and outreach - archival preservation: including policy, disaster prevention and repositories. This one-stop-shop will be essential for a wide readership including archives and records assistants, librarians, information managers and IT professionals responsible for archives and records and managers of archives staff.

We are now entering a world of electronic communications where an increasing amount of contemporary information is created and retained only in electronic form. How will such unstable flows of information be preserved for future historians? Will the future have a past? Will the history of ourcontemporary world be lost to our descendants? History and Electronic Artefacts is the first publication to examine the implications of this revolution for historical research. Historians are used to handling paper and parchment record in archives. These are actual pieces of correspondence which passed between historical actors. They are alsorelatively stable artefacts which can be preserved easily. Two factors introduced by the electronic revolution threaten the existence of paper archives: the dissociation between information content and the media by which it is transmitted ruptures the solidity of the archival object. The ability tostore electronic information anywhere and access it remotely via networks could make the central paper archive redundant. Experts from the fields of information management and technology, data archiving, library science, as well as historians, consider the issues raised in depth. The authors also place a unique emphasis on European developments.