The race to save our online lives from a digital dark age
Concerns over digital data preservation grow as vast information is created daily, with organizations like the Internet Archive working to save at-risk content and prevent a potential "digital dark age."
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The article discusses the growing concern over the preservation of digital data in an era where vast amounts of information are created daily, yet much of it is at risk of being lost. As technology evolves, the fragility of digital formats poses a significant challenge, with examples like MySpace and GeoCities illustrating how entire archives can vanish. Archivists and organizations like the Internet Archive are working to save at-risk data, prioritizing ephemeral content and user-generated works. The article highlights the importance of deciding what to preserve and the potential for future historians to interpret these records. It suggests that a more inclusive approach to archiving could provide a diverse snapshot of contemporary culture. Additionally, it emphasizes the need for ongoing efforts to maintain access to older digital formats, as many may become obsolete. The Olive project aims to create a decentralized network to support the use of outdated software, helping to prevent a "digital dark age." Ultimately, the article calls for a collective responsibility to archive our digital lives for future generations.
- The preservation of digital data is increasingly critical as vast amounts of information are created daily.
- Organizations like the Internet Archive are actively working to save at-risk digital content.
- Decisions on what to archive are complex, with a focus on inclusivity and diversity in historical records.
- The risk of data loss is heightened by the obsolescence of digital formats and software.
- Projects like Olive aim to ensure access to old digital formats, preventing a potential "digital dark age."
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3 commentsI used to use Linux on the desktop and periodically lost things that were saved to it. A lot of early photos are lost due to that.
I had a web page about my daughter starting when she was born in January 1998 and my employer, who I left, promised it would "always" be preserved. They deleted it about a year or two later and I wish I could somehow get it back.
The premise of the article basically is that, because you certainly cannot trust cloud companies to keep your data.
It used to be your only real guarantee of them keeping your data is the fact that exponentially growing storage solutions would make your previous data a pittance compared to newer storage solution capacity.
But I think that's going to come to an end, much like the inevitable end of die shrinks.
Moreover, with the amount of intrusive data mining going on, it would be better for all of our privacy if our content just expired regularly.
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