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Read MoreCase Studies
Case Studies and Examples Digital Archivy is a one-stop full-service shop for digital archiving and content management services. The two Case Studies below illustrate examples and outline benefits gained from digital archivy. As technology and media change, people and process evolve as well. As a result, it is difficult for institutions to identify challenges early and leverage situational awareness to...
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Read MoreResources
DIGITAL ARCHIVING RESOURCES Digital Archivy takes a holistic look and provides Resources that impact each client’s information ecosystem. We build on our experience and our insights and resources from leading sources on digital preservation. In addition, we make recommendations for improvements in process, technology or both. In some cases, we conduct personnel searches for professional archivists...
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Read MoreValue
Value of Digital Archiving and Preservation The Digital Archiving value is widespread, immediate and measurable. Our solutions are based on user requirements, archival standards and best practice, and they are informed by professional experience. We add significant value by ensuring longevity, access and security for digital assets preservation and lifecycle management archival workflows and procedures...
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Read MoreClients
Digital Archivy’s client projects serve the diverse needs of a variety of institutions including Fortune 500 corporations and privately held companies, a range of non-profit and cultural organizations and foundations, academic institutions, governmental agencies, religious institutions and individuals and families. We help build digital archives and preservation systems from the ground up. In other...
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Read MoreServices
Services for Digital Archiving & Preservation Digital Archivy provides Digital Archiving & Preservation Services for institutions, archives and archivists. We are moving from a people-centric Information Age to an AI-era ruled by machine-centric algorithms. To address this, some digital archiving services are mission critical. As Big Data gets bigger, it is less controlled. Additional layers and...
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About
People always ask me, what is it About Digital Archivy?! About Digital Archivy is more than an archiving business: it’s a mindset and method for improving organization and digital preservation. We apply design thinking and strategic problem solving to build effective, efficient and responsive digital archives and content management systems. Our solutions are user-focused, scalable, and...
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Read MoreContact
Contact Information Digital Archivy’s Contact Information helps clients set their record straight. We do this by analyzing data sets, researching archival content management systems, and making strategic recommendations related to People, Process and Technology. As a result, we have learned that the best solutions address specific circumstances, needs, goals, and requirements. We work with clients...
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Read MoreMetadata Enhancement
Metadata Enhancement and Data Visualization Metadata enhancement and data visualization often leads to important insights. While this provides greater context about a wide-range of experience, the truth is clients based in different sectors and industries face similar problems. I have worked with dozens of clients, and each one had a problem or need that helped develop my understanding of best practice....
Most Recent Articles
Impeachment Inquiry: Whistleblower Complaint (pt 3)
As we join the nation in watching how the Impeachment Inquiry Whistleblower Complaint plays out, we have ideated and designed a prototype Digital Archivy scorecard for informational appraisal. The Digital Archivy Scorecard grades based on Assessment, Identity, Description, Priority, and Security Classification.
In this way, we can determine the value of content based on provenance, function, significance and accuracy. With that in mind, we will look at another piece of critical evidence: The Whistleblower Complaint. This will allow us to assess the accuracy and trustworthiness of the different data inputs that will be examined over the course of the next few weeks.
IMPEACHMENT INQUIRY: WHISTLE-BLOWER COMPLAINT
The whistleblower filed his/her 9-page Whistleblower Complaint after the phone call between President Trump and Ukraininan President Zelensky. It is from August 12, 2019, and though it is unclassified, it has significant redactions. Further, though it is in PDF format, it is not text-searchable.
As we analyze the source, we examine its relevance and the provenance to gain a fuller understanding of its import. With this in mind, we gave significantly different scores for the Whistleblower complaint compared with previous blog entry (“Digital Archivy Scorecard on Information Appraisal (part 2)“).
In large part, this is due to the fact that we are confident in the identity of the sole author. We understand his perspective, and believe the accuracy and likelihood of his first-hand evidence. The clear language and thorough descriptions are all positive and could be used to support other sources. However, there are questions related to the document’s authenticity, provenance and chain of custody. Because there are redactions due to sensitive intelligence issues, the Description score suffers. This is a critical concern because accusations of a “mafia-style shake-down” are urgent and quite serious.
The priority of this source of information is very high, but it gets a B in Security Classification because parts of the complaint are redacted. This obscures and affects the complaint itself. Consequently, it also may change the meaning or message of the information itself.
However, on a whole, the Whistleblower Complaint is B-grade material. This information source is high-priority.
Stay tuned for Part 4.
Check out Part 1 on the Information Appraisal scorecard here.
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AskAnArchivist Day and #ArchivistJokes
AskAnArchivist Day – October 2, 2019
According to the Society of American Archivists (SAA), October is Archives Month. And, today, October 2, is AskAnArchivist day.
Time permitting, we will post some of the jokes and other frequently asked questions we have collected related to digital archiving.
Follow us on twitter for the latest updates on #AskAnArchivist Day.
Joke 16
Here is the Joke 1:
It’s #AskAnArchivist day!!
If you have ?s on #archiving or digital archiving, or if you want
to find #jokes about #archives and #Archivists, check back here!
#AskAnArchivist Joke 1
Q: What does an archivist like on scones?
. . .
A: . .. preserves
har har . . .
It’s #AskAnArchivist day! Samples from a collection of jokes curated over years. #archives #archivists
AskAnArchivist Joke 2:
Q: How did they find the #archivist in cold storage? . . . . .
A: . . . shivering
Here’s a question we often answer, even if it’s sometimes unasked. #askanarchivist
Joke 3:
Q: If content is king, what’s metadata?
. . . .
A. . . . Pope
Joke 4:
Q: What are a digital archivist’s favorite tools in the shed?
A: . . . . . . . . Access (axes)
#archivists actively promote open and equitable access to records in their care within the context of … www2.archivists.org/statements/saa
Joke 5:
Q: What TV star do archivists love most?
. . . . . . . A: Love? Nahhh, we RESPECT DA FONZ ! (respect des fonds)
Meme is courtesy of our friends at Archives 101 Zine (PDF) of Los Angeles Archivists Collective.
To learn more about “respect des fonds” and the archival principle of provenance, check out this definition from the Society of American Archivists
Joke 6
Q: Do you have any institutional records?
. . . . . .
. . .. ..
A: yeah, I’ve got some 🌍 Earth, 💨 Wind and 🔥 Fire
Joke 7
Q: What did the #archivist feel when her
shopping cart was cut off in the supermarket?
…. . . . . A: store-rage
Joke 8
Joke 9
Joke 12
Check out our case studies for additional questions that we answered and solutions that we found.
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Digital Archivy Scorecard for Information Appraisal (pt 2)
Digital Archivy Scorecard on Information Appraisal, part 2
As we join the nation in watching how the #ImpeachmentInquiry plays out, it is an excellent time for us to design a prototype Digital Archivy scorecard for informational appraisal. The Digital Archivy Scorecard will provide grades based on Assessment, Identity, Description, Priority, and Security Classification.
In this way, we can determine the value of content based on provenance, function, significance and accuracy. With that in mind, today we will look at one piece of critical evidence: The Transcript of July 25 phone call between President Trump and Ukraininan President Zelensky. The 9-page transcript of the conversation has disappeared from public. It was replaced by the 5-page Memo of Conversation prepared and released by the White House. This piece focuses on the “idea” of the original transcript.
THE TRANSCRIPT
The transcript is a record of the phone call. As far as we know, there is no audio recording of it. There is a chance, of course, that the Ukrainian Government made an audio recording. Assuming there is no recording, this transcript was created by 12 employees who listen in on the call and jot down notes. Later these notes are compiled and combined by somebody, and then they are used to re-create the transcript. There is no guarantee that the final version is the most accurate representation.
You can see from the scores below, that it is lacking as a trusted source of information. By our score card, we give it straight C’s in five categories: Assessment; Identification; Description; Assign Priority; and Security Classification.
In the first stage, Assessment, we grade as a C because we cannot confirm provenance with regard to authorship. It may be collaborative, but it contains spelling errors (misspelling they’re as there). It also loses points due to the fact that editorial changes were made prior to public release.
Identification gets a B. This is not a unique (“smoking gun”) transcript, but its authorship is clear. Rather, it is one of many different calls between Trump and Zelinsky. There were additional conversations between Zelinsky and Trump, Mike Pence, Rudy Giuliani, and probably others.
Scorecard Descriptions
We give a C to Describe because the content itself is not complete. There are, for example, a number of sentences that contain ellipses. This indicates an incomplete transcript. Without knowledge of the call’s duration, the subject matter, or even the number of participants, we can not trust that this 5-page transcript is complete and accurate.
We grade Priority on this information source as a D. It is not authoritative and may serve other purposes. Also, it loses data integrity because it is an interpretation of an aural phone call. It is in a written format. This is key. Since we do not have access to additional supporting materials (e.g., complete notes or an audio recording) yet, this is a non-trusted source.
We give Security Classification an F. This document was declassified and semi-redacted and clearly serves political issues. In fact, the redactions serve to undermine the authority of the message. We cannot look at it as an unvarnished truth. Also, it is an interpretation of one of many phone calls in which the US Administration asked for a favor and withheld funds promised and approved by the Congress.
Conclusion
Read more about the transcript itself from The Washington Post’s. However, the article focuses more on the preparation of the MemCon (Memorandum of Conversation). The Post also warn us on its value: “Don’t rely on whatever transcript is released,” said a former staffer, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to comment candidly. “Even if it’s unredacted; those transcripts are heavily edited by political leadership at NSC. I’ve seen substance deleted from these call ‘transcripts’ to delete either superfluous details or more substance.” Here’s an article from Quartz that addresses the “transcript” described herein. They state it is a full and unredacted, but it is “not a verbatim transcript of a discussion.”
Find out more about our clients and work.
Check out Part 1 on the Information Appraisal Scorecard here.
Stay tuned for Part 3 of this blog series.
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