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Comments on your review of Nicolson Baker's Double Fold



Dear Mr. Dirdan:

As an archivist, I've been following the discussion of Nicholson Baker's
Double Fold with much interest. I'd like to offer some comments on your
review, which was posted to the Archives and Archivists e-mail list.

First, I seriously doubt that gross negligence and crass incompetence in the
microfilming of paper records is anywhere near as widespread as Mr. Baker
claims. In a competent microfilimg laboratory, there are carefully
formulated and followed guidelines for all aspects of the work, including
inspection of the finished product and reshooting of inferior work.
Microfilm cameras can compensate for partially opened books without removing
pages or mashing the bindings flat, and there are also stands on which
partially opened books may be placed for filming.

Second, paper does and will lose its usefulness. Acidity and the wear and
tear of being handled, no matter how carefully, all take their toll over
years. Also, many paper records lose their legibility due to other problems.
Ink or other chemicals alter the paper or bleed through; many old journals
are nearly or completely unreadable because the ink used has bled through,
causing the writing on both sides of a page to merge into a tangled scrawl.
Moisture, mold and vermin to which the paper has been inadvertently
subjected, usually well before an archives receives it, hastens its demise.
Further, no competent archives or library ever discards rare or
irreplaceable original materials on a high-tech whim, as Mr. Baker seems to
suggest. If the original is especially valuable, it would normally be
preserved but removed from reference once it has been filmed.

Third, your suspicions of utopian thinking on Mr. Baker's part seem
well-founded. He has some intriguing ideas, but how does he intend for them
to be implemented? From construction and staffing of suitable facilities to
purchase of supplies and development of required but non-existent
technology, how will preservation of originals at all costs be funded? It is
an unfortunate fact of life that many if not most libraries and archives
suffer from chronic shortages of space or funds or, more often, both. Call
it a "managerial class's obsession" if you wish, but the stark reality is
that, without adequate funding, the whole point is rendered moot because the
archives housing the records will close. And, no matter how lavish the funds
or abundant the space, paper will still decay and deteriorate at a rate
consistent with its acidity and the abuse it has suffered, and the
technology does not exist to render paper indestructible. Microfilm, for its
faults and shortcomings compared to paper, retains its usefulness far
longer. (Incidentally, the issue of wear and tear to microfilms is addressed
by producing multiple copies. An original is shot from the paper record, and
copies are made from it for future copying and reference.)

The true utopians are those who demand that every archival record be scanned
and made available on the Internet. The error of such thinking is quickly
exposed whenever a computer crashes, the power fails or software is no
longer usable. For example, in our collections we have numerous video
cassettes which can no longer be viewed because the equipment needed to view
them no longer exists. On the other hand, microfilm can always be used; even
if there were a calamity in which the paper originals were ruined and
computers were rendered unusable, all you need is sunlight and a good
magnifier to be able to read microfilm.

I enjoy as much as anyone else the feel of paper and the superior
convenience of a book. But as an archivist, I also have to consider what
will happen to the information contained in that book after the paper it is
printed on has crumbled or been rendered illegible due to age. Microfilm,
while lacking the appeal of paper, provides the best permanence for
information retention.

Best wishes,

Thomas Berry, Archivist
Historical Construction Equipment Association
16623 Liberty Hi Road
Bowling Green, Ohio 43402
Phone 419-352-5616
Fax 419-352-6086
tberry@wcnet.org
http://www.hcea.net

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