http://www.ukoln.ac.uk/web-focus/events/workshops/jisc-powr-2008-09/

Web Preservation in a Web 2.0 Environment

Brian Kelly UKOLN University of Bath Bath, UK

Email

B.Kelly@ukoln.ac.uk

About This Talk

Will use of Web 2.0 services lead to new preservation concerns? And how should we respond to these new challenges?

Resources bookmarked using ‘ jisc-powr-2008-09 ' tag UKOLN is supported by: A centre of expertise in digital information management This work is licensed under a Attribution NonCommercial-ShareAlike 2.5 licence (but note caveat)

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Is Web 2.0 Different?

Implications of Web 2.0 for Web site preservation: • • Use of 3 Content rd  party services (‘

network as platform

’) collaboration and communication • Richer diversity of services (not just a file on a filestore/CMS/database) • More complex IPR issues Let’s look at: • Case study 1 - wikis • • • Case study 2 Case study 3 Case study 4 – blogs – reusing data – comms tools • • • • Case study 5 – recording events Case study 6 – Slideshare Case study 7 – Use of video tools Case study 8 – social networks A centre of expertise in digital information management

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Case Study 1: A Public Wiki

3 WetPaint wiki used to support various workshops Approaches taken: • Open access to all prior to & during event (to minimise barriers to creating content) • Access restricted to WetPaint users after event • Access later restricted to event organisers Many aspects of Web site curation are to do with implementing such best practices, rather See JISC PoWR blog post

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Case Study 1: A Public Wiki

WetPaint provides an option for backing up data.

A zipped file of the pages can be saved for storing on a locally managed service.

There are limitations in this particular service (poor quality HTML, internal links don’t work, …) But this does illustrate an approach which can be taken.

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Case Study 2a: Blog Migration

How might you migrate the contents of a blog (e.g. you’re leaving college)?

This question was raised by Casey Leaver, shortly before leaving Warwick University A centre of expertise in digital information management

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Case Study 2a: Blog Migration

She migrated her blog from blogs at Warwick Univ to Wordpress 6 Note, though, that not all data was transferred (e.g. title, but not contents) so there’s a need to check transfer mechanisms

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Case Study 2a: Blog Migration

A backup of UK Web Focus blog is available on Vox: • Manual migration of new posts every few weeks • Only migrates text • Doesn’t migrate images, embedded videos, internal links, comments, … Migration of blogs, wikis, etc. is not currently an easy task 

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Case Study 2b: The Individual’s Blog (1)

Auricle blog: • Launched Jan 2004 by head of e learning team, Bath • High profile & public visibility by early adopter & evangelist Today: • It’s gone • Lost after evangelist left, new staff arrive, new priorities, … Thoughts?

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Case Study 2b: The Individual’s Blog (2)

Auricle reborn: • Further Google revealed the blog has been reborn • New domain (www.auricle.org/) • New engine (Wordpress) & look and feel (but old engine still available) • New content being added • Old content still accessible Thoughts?

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Case Study 3: Reusing Data

Blog post in Facebook. Possible concerns: • • It’s not sustainable You’ve given ownership to Facebook Response: • The post is managed in WordPress; Fb displays copy (to new audience) • Fb don’t claim ownership – they claim rights to make money (e.g. through ads) A centre of expertise in digital information management

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Case Study 4: Disposable Data

Twitter – example of a micro blogging application Facebook status messages is another related example Issues: • Will Twitter be sustain able over a long period?

• What will happen to the data?

• What about the IPR for ‘tweets’?

• What about institutional A centre of expertise in digital information management uses?

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Case Study 4: Disposable Data

Many twitterers regard their tweets as disposal I tend to use Twitter as a ‘virtual water cooler’ – sharing gossip, jokes and occasional work related information with (mainly) people I know You could make use of clients which manage your tweets (e.g. treat like email) But you should develop your policies first, prior to

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Case Study 4: Disposable Data

Skype

(or your preferred VoIP application) are growing in popularity Issues: • Is the digital data (the call) preserved?

• What about the video and the IM chats?

Possible Responses: • Am I bovvered?

• I didn’t bother with analogue phones, why should I worry now?

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Case Study 5: Digitized Talks

Seminar on Open Science given at UKOLN in Feb 2008.

Video clip of opening 10 mins taken & uploaded to YouTube Issues: • Privacy • • • Quality Benefits Long term access Benefits identified – now how do we seek to deploy recordings of seminars, conferences, etc. on a more systematic basis?

This is work in progress – but see

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Case Study 6: Slideshare

15 What happens to your slides if Slideshare disappears?

My approach: • • Master copy held on managed environment Info on master on title slide and metadata • CC licence & download available – many copies A centre of expertise in digital information management

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Case Study 7 – Video Tools

16 Requirement: • Provide brief video clips for colleagues running workshop • Initial idea – use Seesmic video micro-blogging service (can include video responses) But: • • No video export function (yet) Accessibility of responses Seesmic and YouTube Web sites and Twirl client are

access

tools; the data is

managed

elsewhere Approach taken: • Create video locally • Upload video to YouTube (to allow textual comments) • Link to managed master file

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Case Study 8: Social Networks

http://newstudents.newport.ac.uk/ University of Wales, Newport and University of Bradford have set up Ning networks for supporting their students: • Bradford: Aimed at students during their first term at University • What does preservation mean in this context?

Answers to this question will be left as an exercise for the participants  A centre of expertise in digital information management Newport: Open Intended for students about to arrive at institution

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What Do We Do For SNs?

A centre of expertise in digital information management The Open University has a presence in Facebook. On 9 Sep 2008: • • 9,785 fans 1,233 wall posts • 138 discussion topics Is anyone: • Recording the history?

• Curating the data • Managing possible risks?

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Role Of The Internet Archive

Can we leave everything to the Internet Archive (IA)?

• Has role to play in Web 1.0

• Seems to archive some public blogs • May not access images or other embedded content • Still has limitations (cf. UCE/BCU) Can’t access, e.g., Facebook pages IA is a 3 rd

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The Research Challenges

Some thoughts: • Preservation of Web sites in known to be difficult • Additional difficulties in a Web 2.0 world • Complexities include technical challenges and business issues However: • Is avoiding Web 2.0 a realistic answer?

• There may be some simple processes which may help A centre of expertise in digital information management

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Accessibility & Preservation

The parallels: • We can’t release xxx: it breaks accessibility guidelines; we’ll be sued • The xxx service provides benefits to many – we’ll see what reasonable adjustments are needed to enhance access Approaches needed: • • Clarification of the purpose of the service Risk assessment of loss of service / record of service / record of look-and-feel • Documented policy A centre of expertise in digital information management

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Conclusions

To conclude: • Web 2.0 services won’t go away • • • • Innovation in departments won’t stop Motivated & dedicated professional can help in preservation But this can’t be guaranteed • • Need for individual / departmental audits for asset management strategies when outside agencies involved?

But maybe we don’t need to preserve stuff Need for education on when stuff may be transient and disposable A centre of expertise in digital information management

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Questions

23 A centre of expertise in digital information management

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