Practical Issues of Building Open Access Repositories

Preservation

Preservation of eprints might seem an academic inquiry, given the early stages of repository use and the easy access that currently exists to eprints in repositories. However, material produced to modern technological standards of just a few years ago can be difficult to access. Old operating systems, file formats or software versions mean that maintaining access to material over 10 years can be problematic. Longer term access - over fifty years - is bound to generate problems. Rather than be faced with solving these issues in the future, it makes sense to try and forestall access problems wherever possible, by following sound preservation strategies in the construction of eprint collections.

An early output from the UK was a feasibility study on eprint preservation: James. Raivo,. Anderson, & Pinfield. 'Requirements and Feasibility Study on Preservation of eprints' This document provides recommendations for research and the development of services and tools to support the long-term preservation of eprints.

There has been some discussion within the repository movement as the desirability of putting effort into preservation of eprints, given the apparent "medium-independent" nature of digital information. SHERPA produced an article,Pinfield and James, 'The Digital Preservation of e-Prints', which looks at the arguments for and against preservation. The article goes on to summarise the technical and organisational challenges of eprint preservation.

The have been the lead partners in SHERPA's preservation work. The UK's Arts and Humanities Data Service (AHDS) has produced a paper, 'Selection Criteria for the Preservation of e-prints' which provides guidance on methods of identifying potential risks to e-prints, prioritizing content to be preserved, and methods of implementing preventive measures to ensure content remains accessible in the long-term.

A further document produced by the AHDS provides a summary of existing standard practices, guidelines, and procedures that will allow the repository to consider long-term implications when storing e-prints. The paper, 'Report on Preservation Standards', looks at the OAIS model for preservation, the rights that are necessary for preservation and the current standards of metadata for this purpose. This is fomring the base for a preservation service run by the AHDS for SHERPA partner institutions.

Deposit Licences

There is a need for a Deposit Licence to be agreed between the depositor and the repository to clarify the rights and IPR involved in the process and in the long-term curation and preservation of the material. The repository administrator needs to be reassured that the depositor has the right to deposit the material and can assign the rights needed for curating the material to the repository.

SHERPA looked at the need for a Deposit Licence and produced two model licences within a report, on which to base an institution's policy and documentation. The legal aspects of these licences have been checked by JISC Legal for their applicability within the UK. However, this does not constitute legal advice, and the reader must consult their own legal team before making use of the licence. The legal framwork will differ from country to country and local advice should be sought before using customised versions of these licences.

Last updated: 04-Feb-2010