Published: April 30, 2024

As technology continues to evolve into every area of our lives, more and more things are housed on a hard drive instead of a hard copy. People worldwide rely on the internet for entertainment, reading and research. But how do all those physical hard copies come to exist online? 
 
Within the University Libraries, the Digital Asset Management and Production Services (DAMPS) team digitizes various physical objects, including books, cassette tapes and photographs, so patrons and researchers can easily access any files they want to work with without needing to check out a physical copy.
 
The team works in two labs: Digital Media Services (DMS) and Digital Imaging Services (DIS). Media Producer and Director Kelly Brichta leads DMS, handling time-based media like audio, film and video, digitizing an assortment of formats, from film, VHS tapes, audio cassettes and vinyl.
 
“We use various legacy equipment,” said Brichta. “So, if we’re digitizing a cassette tape, we’re also using a cassette deck, which is the equipment it was made for, in combination with capturing, compression and editing software.”
 
Digital Imaging Program Manager Adrienne Wagner works in DIS with static media including books, photographs and text. The preservation of archival objects is a top goal, so DIS employs a good handling policy, wearing gloves to ensure the original physical copies remain in good condition.  
 
“Depending on their age, size and fragility, books can be some of the more difficult items to digitize,” said Wagner. “Everything from the pages, the binding and the glue can be susceptible to breakdown, and the weight of the book too needs to be taken into account. We don't want any harm to come to the physical object, and our goal is to minimize the wear and tear as much as possible.”
 
Through digitization, an old book from the 19th century can be accessed by multiple people and read online, but getting to that result can hinge on an array of preservation issues. Due to age, some objects can become more brittle when exposed to oxygen and should only be removed from their box for scanning. Regarding media, there may be a lot of different issues depending on the carriers. For example, to prevent sticky shed syndrome where the binders in the magnetic tape deteriorate and render the tapes unusable, DMS may bake the tape to slow down the process to get a good capture.
 
Though the majority of DAMPS projects originate with Rare and Distinctive Collections (RaD), the labs are auxiliary units and can take on outside work from the public, external researchers and other institutions. After undergoing a proposal process that answers questions about the material, its shape, physical form, formats, number, etc., the proposal will then be decided by the team on where the labs can accomplish the desired outcome.
 
“The proposal process is about feasibility,” said Michael Dulock, associate professor, digital asset librarian, and DAMPS lead. “It’s rare for us to reject a proposal as long as it’s physically and technologically possible and does not violate copyright law.” 
 
Because digital preservation is still a relatively new and constantly moving discipline, it’s essential to keep in mind the many factors that may impact the ability to ensure later access to files. How long will the current formats we use be around? Are they tied to specific companies like Adobe? Will changes in the technological industry impact them? What can we do with a PDF in a hundred years? Will the file formats we’re producing now be usable or convertible later?  
 
“A vinyl record stored in a good environment will last a very, very long time. You can put a needle on it and listen to it easily a hundred years from now as long as it doesn’t get too hot or get played too many times,” added Dulock. “On the other hand, we don’t know what an MP3 will do in a hundred years. We might have to convert it five or six times to another format.”  
 
A large part of the digitization team’s funding comes from the libraries’ general operations, which DAMPS draws from when working on a library digitization project in addition to other outside funds. Because DMS and DIS are auxiliary units, they can generate revenue if a public patron pays the lab to digitize personal objects, allowing the labs to purchase equipment and pay student workers. 
 
Check out a few recently digitized collections the team has worked on:

Digital Imaging Services

Digital Media Services