National Archives and Electronic Records: Where Are We
Going?

by Sue Gavrel^

Electronic Records: The Challenge to Archives

Introduction

The information society has had a major impact on the

activities of traditional archives. The prediction of the

"paperless office" in the eighties has not materialized as

yet and in fact the amount of paper has increased sub-

stantially over the past decade. Rather than reduce paper,

the introduction of computer technology has increased

the number of products and copies of those products.

The work of the archivist in the identification of the

archivally valuable records has increased due to the paper

burden. One must sift through far more records to

identify those of historical value.

Added to the increase in the number of records created is

the pressure of the research community to retain more
rather than fewer records. Prior to the mid-seventies, the

major factor in the appraisal of records was that of

evidential value - the evidence the records contain of the

organization and functions of agencies. Archives (and I

restrict my comments mostly to North American and
particularly Canadian Archives) have acquired many
more records based on their informational and research

value over the past fifteen years. In Canada, this coin-

cides with the growth of social and economic programs

of the federal government.

The computerization of many government programs

began in the early sixties and has increased ever since.

The centralization of edp expertise was very evident

during this time and continued until the arrival of the

micro computer. The large database systems were, in

most cases, built by the EDP experts and used to service

the program managers' needs.

Archival Programsfor Machine Readable Records
The use and importance of computers was recognized by
the large National Archival repositories in many coun-

tries in the establishment of machine readable record

programs. Over the years standards were developed for

the appraisal, acquisition, processing, conservation and
servicing of machine readable records. Due to the small

number of archivists involved in these programs, a great

deal of co-operation and sharing of information lead to

the develqjment of procedures to handle these new
records.

Only a minimum amount of success was achieved in the

identification and subsequent transfer of computer

records of archival value from government agencies.

The control of these records was in the hands of the edp

area and outside the normal channels of the control of

paper records (Records Managers).

Efforts to mimic the systems in place for the control of

paper records met with limited success, mostly due to the

lack of familiarity with the archives by those in charge of

the development of the systems. Machine readable

programs, in traditional archival settings, although

recognized as important, lacked the focus and strength

required to affect the overall organization of records.

Trends

In recent years, this trend is changing due to a variety of

reasons. In the discussion which follows, I will outline

some of the changes and trends which will have a

profound impact on archival repositories. These changes

range from new understandings of the importance of

information; technological change; and major changes in

the ways data are created, stored and used. The next

decade will require archives to focus on electronic

records or risk losing the electronic cultural heritage.

Technological Change
It is not my intention to provide an overview or history of

the changes we have experienced in technology in the

past decades. It is, however, important to review some of

these changes in light of how records are created, why,

and how archives must adapt to these changes. The

major trend which has affected the way records are

created results from the rapid penetration of microcom-

puters into the market in the last five years and, in

particular, into government departments and agencies.

The centralization of edp services is disappearing with

the use of microcomputers in the office environment.

Managers, officers and clerks have now as much comput-

ing power on their desks as the mainframes of the

seventies provided. The ability to create, manipulate,

access and disseminate data has been decentralized. The

trend to purchase "off the shelf' software has taken away
from the centralized edp shops in the creation of in-house

software and database systems. Linked to the penetration

of microcomputers is the development of local area

networks. The linking of staff provides for the creation

32 lASSIST Quarleriy



and revision of documents which can be done on-line

with only the final version being available in either hard

copy or electronic format The ability to provide for the

development of documents relating the evolution of the

policy, to changes in administration, or to data is now in

the hands of the creators of those documents. In most

cases, LAN's do not provide for the traditional records

management approach to control of records.

Individual workers make decisions regarding the disposi-

tion of the recOTds. Such a system existed for the

development of large database systems under the control

of edp professionals. The difficulties experienced in

gaining control over what information is being created

and destroyed can be magnified as all employees become
responsible for their records. The program of economic

restraint experienced in most western countries is also

leading to the use of microcomputers, as it is seen as a

way of increasing productivity and decreasing personnel

costs.

A major effort can be seen in the development and

interest in communication standards. The lack of

compatibility between hardware has been, and continues

to be, a major problem to the increased usage of data.

The efforts now seen in the development of International

Standards is encouraging. The trend to the Open Sys-

tems Interconnection standard protocols provide for the

possibility of connecting systems with different hard-

ware. Other standards will have an impact of the in-

creased sharing of data. Map and Chart Data Interchange

Format, or MACDIF, data is an attempt to provide a

standard format for the transfer of chart and graph data

from and to a variety of systems. Office Document
Architecture/Office Document Interchange Format

(ODA/ODIF) provides for similar transferability of text.

The work towards developing and implementing such

standards must be followed closely by archivists, as it is

through such efforts that some of the technical issues

such as making valuable data accessible in the future

may be resolved.

New techniques for software development such as fourth

generation languages and expert systems techniques are

becoming important tools providing faster and more

flexible software development and more user interfaces.

No longer must the design and development of databases

be the sole responsibility of the edp professional. Data-

bases can be created and used by those who have access

to D-Base or other such software. Expert systems

potentially pose major problems for the archivist In the

past the acquisition of data tried to steer away from

software dependent systems. Expert systems which can

be defined as " an intelligent computer program that uses

knowledge and inference procedures to solve problems

that are difficult enough to require significant human
expertise for their solution" are only in the early stages of

practical application. Their potential to assist managers

with complex planning and scheduling tasks, diagnose

diseases, etc. is great The impact of such systems on the

documentation of the decision making process is evident

How archivists will respond to such systems is a major

challenge.

Types ofData

Part of the technological changes, but one which should

be highlighted, is the trend towards integrated systems

and appUcations. Two specific types will be discussed:

The Geographic Information System (GIS)

GeograjAic Information Systems are beginning to play a

major role in the information society. Today's systems

only superficially resemble the automated mapping

systems of the sixties. GIS are increasingly being used to

conserve and manage a wide variety of data from natural

resources to environmental pollution as well as in the

planning and management of cities - such land informa-

tion systems cross organizational and sectorial bounda-

ries and represent an opportunity to develop new infor-

mation based products and services.

Compound Documents
The move to more integrated systems is seen in the

"compound document". The integration of voice, data

documents and graphics oversteps the traditional media

boundaries. All are reduced to the common language of

binary code. Not only is it feasible to create the com-

pound document, but it may also have been created from

information which was only accessible on the screen for

a brief period. The source of that information cannot be

traced. The accessibility of data from other systems

through local area networks and the merging of data from

a variety of data bases will create documentation prob-

lems for the archivist. The ease with which such infor-

mation becomes available and usable will be reflected in

the move to adopt communication standards, more user

oriented software, and more computing power.

Ir^ormation As A Resource

The information society has created a new awareness of

information as resource. The major expenditures on

hardware and software development of the seventies has

created a new awareness of the value of the information

which these systems manipulate and store. In Canada,

Access to Information and Privacy legislation led to the

acceptance of a computer based record as a record. In

the definition of a record for the purpose of the legisla-

tion, machine readable is included.

The requirement to account for information regardless of

the machine on which it was stored was an important

step in the recognition of computer records. The new

National Archives Act passed in 1987 also uses the same

definition of record. The Act stipulates that no records of

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the Government of Canada can be destroyed without the

consent of the National Archivist It further stipulates

that those records deemed to have archival value must be

transferred to the National Archives. The definition of

record to include machine readable records ensures that

electronic records are part of the National Archives'

responsibility. More recently two new policies have

added to the importance given to information: the

Information Holdups Policy (just recenUy approved)

which will direct government dejjartments to manage
their information in a holistic manner and account for

that information through the development of directories

to it; and the Information Management Plan which
ouUines to departments the importance of the planning of

information management rather than the justification of

new equipment purchases.

All of these policies, acts, and planning strategies are the

result of an awakening to the importance of information

as a resource.

Another interesting trend in the field of information is the

move by the public and private sectors to develop co-

operative databases. The Geographic Information

Systems are an example of this type of co-operative

effort. Similar to the compound document such co-

operative databases will have an impact on the archival

organization of records.

Much more could be said on the trends and changes
which technology will initiate. It is important to look
briefiy at the impact such changes will have on the

traditional functions of archives.

The Challenge to Archives

"The digitization of information through the common
language of the binary code is bringing about the conver-
gence of voice, usage and data - and of the telecommuni-
cations, electronics and computing industries based upon
them".

Over the last decade, Archives have tended to expand
acccH-ding to media-based responsibilities; textual

records, cartographic, film and television, photographic
and machine readable. Practices and procedures were
developed to acquire, process, store and service the

different forms of information as each had its special

requirements. The fundamentals of archival theory were
common to all media. Appraisal criteria, were based on
the principles of evidential, infcxmational and legal

value. It was in practices for arrangement and descrip-
tion where the differences became more evident. Proce-
dures and practices for the long term preservation of
machine readable records were developed in the seven-
ties. The procedures were based on large mainframe
systems and proved successful ioc the conservation of
data in systems.

Technology is now the driving force behind the integra-

tion of the different types of records. Just as media
divided Archives into specific units, it now will play a
large role in integrating these units. With the use of

electronic technology in the creation of all types of

records, the media on which the information resides

becomes the common element.

Information is created and transmitted in so many forms
that archivists must now look at program activities as a

whole and identify those records which have archival

value as well as the most appropriate form in which they

should be stored. Electronic records provide many
research possibilities. As more types of records are

created in electronic form - more such records are likely

to be of archival value. The major obstacle is, of course,

the long term accessibility of the information in elec-

tronic form. For other records-paper, photos, maps
estabhshed techniques have been developed which
preserve the records for future use. Technology did not

have a major effect on long term preservation except for

improving the techniques. With electronic records, the

media, the software and hardware are constantly chang-

ing - Evidence of this can be seen in the experience

gained to date. Electronic records created in the seven-

ties are different from what is now being created. Proce-

dures, valid for data in systems, must be modified and
reevaluated to cope with compound documents and GIS.

The technological requirements put pressure on estab-

lished procedures. The focus of any archival program for

electronic records must focus its resources on resolving

the technical issues of how best to transfer records to the

archives, how to process these records to ensure their

accessibility. Archivists will be required to support

efforts to ensure standards; to become involved with

systems as they are being created; and to keep abreast

and knowledgeable about the changing technology and
how it affects the creation and use of records.

These are major changes for institutions which have
traditionally dealt with the past.

Finally, new methods in records creation may have

fundamental effects on traditional archival theory and
principles. Archivists must become active participants in

the creation of information, in many instances identifying

elements of archival value before they are created, in

order to ensure the preservation of the historical record.

Archives have, to date, been concerned with document-

ing the activities of an organization or business. How
does this new role affect the documentation of activities

when the archivist has participated in the creation stage?

As more organizations undertake co-operative efforts in

information creation, how do we determine which

records originate with which organization? Who has the

ultimate responsibility or control of the records? Such

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systems break down the barriers between public and

private sectors; federal, provincial and municipal govern-

ments. The clear lines of origin become blurred.

Conclusion

Today's presentation can only briefly mention the issues

and resulting challenges to traditional archives. Issues

such as these are of utmost importance to the archival

community. The "paperless office" is not yet a reality

but signs of its existence are much more evident today

than they were two to five years ago. EffcMts to resolve

the problems are imperative if records documenting the

nineties are to be available for future generations.

Presented at the IFDO/IASSIST 89 Conference held in

Jerusalem, Israel, May 15-18, 1989

Forester, Tom. High-Tech Society. MIT Press, 1988.

p.l

Spring 1991