http://dablog.ulcc.ac.uk/2009/07/11/good-news-from-the-dpc/
My day today began with one of those moments that remind us how technology, and the world, changes. On the train I sat next to someone reading and scribbling on an academic text of some sort on which the words “network research” and “SNA” appeared prominently. I began reading, as one does (yes, I shouldn’t, but I always do.) The first paragraph or so made sense and then I was brought up short. If you worked in computer networking during the 1970s, 1980s or 1990s (as I did) then seeing “SNA” and “network” within a few paragraphs of each other could only mean one thing, and it came from IBM. (Google still thinks so.) But in this case, SNA meant social network analysis, an entirely different field. (And one possibly related to Erdős numbers, a favourite of mine.) There’s even some perl modules for it, which is more than could be said for ACF/VTAM.
But I digress. I’m here to write about some outcomes from Friday’s DPC board meeting. Encouragingly, it looks likely that the digital preservation award will return in November 2010, although some hurdles remain to be overcome. It’s quite possible that some aspects (such as eligibility or marking criteria) may change. Watch out for news late this year or early next. In the meantime, if you have views on what would make the awards more interesting or relevant to you, and particularly on what might encourage you to enter, do let me or the DPC know.
The joint Society of Archivists’s digital preservation roadshows (supported by DPC, TNA, Planets and Cymal) have been extremely popular, with some events over-subscribed. They are proving a great way to get basic, practical information about digital preservation tools and methods into the hands of working archivists and records managers. The problems, and the reception, sound reminiscent of similar work I did for the SoA about 10 years ago, as part of their occasional training days for newly-qualified archivists.
I’m also pleased to say that the Board approved a proposal to allocate more money to training scholarships in 2009/10, which can be used to support attendance at DPTP or other member-provided courses such as DC 101 (which is currently free.) We’re also looking forward to a joint training showcase in Belfast with the DCC’s DC 101, facilitated by JISC and PRONI, in September. More details will appear here and elsewhere when we have them.
We’re expecting an increased number of DPC techwatch reports in the coming year. The latest, released on preview to DPC members yesterday (2009-07-10), covers geospatial data, and there’s a long list of candidate topics for the next couple of years.
Finally, the board said thanks and farewell to its current chair, Ronald Milne, who is taking up a new post at the National Library of New Zealand next month. The Vice Chair, Bruno Longmore, will act as DPC chair until elections are organised for the AGM in November.
