Hello Archivists,
I need advice about the
best available references for defining models for organizing, accessing, and
archiving electronic documents. In my field, software engineering, we create
various documents related to product requirements, and to the design,
implementation, & testing of systems of computer programs. When the time
comes to archive these documents, we naively focus on the technology for
storing the documents instead of on maintaining access to the content. Some of
the problems we encounter when organizing the content of our archived material
reflect the limitations imposed by the technology and operating systems, and
by non-product issues like idiosyncratic filing systems or the corporate
entity that purchased the storage software. While each of these has an impact
on the structure of the system, they are not applied or understood
consistently, nor is there a formal methodology for doing so. The resulting
archive systems are often defined in an ad hoc manner, created without
knowledge of the fundamentals of archiving information for preservation, ease
of retrieval, & control of access to authorized people. The systems
contain terabytes of useful information that are difficult to search with a
goal of retrieving summary information about the content & its location.
It occurs to me that our species has been busy collecting,
categorizing, and controlling access to various artifacts and information for
more than a couple of millennia. The problems that I describe in software
engineering are quite likely problems that have had solutions or heuristics
for a very long time. This is the reason I am posting my request. Putting
aside the hubris that seems to go with the engineering professions, I'm
stepping outside of my discipline, asking for help from those who know much
more than I. Any direction to sources & related fields of inquiry would be
welcomed.
Thanks,
========================================= John
A. Hunter Sr. Design Engineer Schlumberger Resource Management Services,
Inc. 313-B Hwy 11 West Union, SC 29696 (864)
638-4936 =========================================
|