R. Brunnhofer & I. Kropac
Due to the change within the ‘information society’ we also have to rethink the traditional roles and tasks of archiving ‘historical’ records. One frequently used alternative is to set up a so-called digital archive – a term with ambiguous denotations. On the one hand digital archive stands for digital representations of existing archives and on the other hand this term may mean re-structured virtual repositories of historical sources independent from their actual stock location.
The digital collection of data offers incontestable advantages: For instance, users may access sources completely independent from ordinary archives, their location or their office hours, or large quantities of data can be examined in relatively short time. The dynamism of digital archives offers the possibility to accomplish changes or additions at any time, and various questions can be solved rapidly. Apart from that, the digital representations of original sources function as backup copies as well as working media: damage and wear of the unique passed down originals can be avoided. If we avail ourselves from the possibility to merge different virtual archives (and other cultural facilities) to complex systems, we really are in the position to create a large-scaled information platform for the different requirements of heterogeneous user groups. Needless to say, that agreements on (logical) standards determine any improvement in this area.
The paper will discuss terminology and techniques, possibilities and limitations, advantages and drawbacks of virtual archives, exemplified by the ‘Fontes Civitatis Ratisponensis’.
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