666 American Archivist / Vol. 53 / Fall 1990

Review Essay ANNE R. KENNEY, editor Downloaded from http://meridian.allenpress.com/american-archivist/article-pdf/53/4/666/2748076/aarc_53_4_y32h731602772u36.pdf by guest on 29 September 2021

Do Real Archivists Need Archives & Museum ?

ANN PEDERSON

Abstract: Archives & Museum Informatics disseminates news and analysis of develop- ments in automation and information technologies and their effects within the archival and museum communities through the publication of a quarterly newsletter and a technical reports series, both of which are edited by David Bearman. The author reviews the contents of both the newsletters and the technical reports, concluding that they comprise a unique and badly needed means to help archivists understand the new approaches, techniques, and technologies that are reshaping human .

About the author: Ann Pederson is a senior lecturer in archives administration and records man- agement in the School of Librarianship, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia. She is a member of the governing council of the Australian Society of Archivists, Inc., and is the editor and coauthor of the critically acclaimed text, Keeping Archives. Archives & Museum Informatics 667

THE QUESTION IN THE title certainly pro- automation news that was essential for the vides the central focus of this essay and successful management of modern docu- suggests corollaries: do archivists read Ar- mentation, but which was virtually inac- chives & Museum Informatics (AMI) pub- cessible to the professional archival and lications? If yes, do they find the content museum community. By packaging and helpful and provocative? If no, why not? distributing the fruits of his research, Bear- Downloaded from http://meridian.allenpress.com/american-archivist/article-pdf/53/4/666/2748076/aarc_53_4_y32h731602772u36.pdf by guest on 29 September 2021 and what might change their ? But man could offset some of the costs of his before beginning to address these concerns, "homework" as a consultant while provid- who or what is Archives & Museum Infor- ing a genuine service to practitioners, though matics, and what does it do? making money was never an expectation.2 David Bearman formed Archives & Mu- His vision was to produce a quarterly seum Informatics (AMI) in November 1986 newsletter that would select, analyze, and as an entrepreneurial research, publishing, present in summarized form information teaching, and consultancy venture focusing about new developments in, and applica- upon new developments in automation and tions of, automation and provide a forum their effects within archival and museum for discussion of the issues and implica- environments world-wide. The word infor- tions raised by these innovations. He also matics was borrowed from biomedicine inaugurated a quarterly series of technical where it represented a new systematic ap- reports that would examine important tech- plication of combined information technol- nologies in greater detail from an archives ogies, techniques, and theories to medical and museum perspective. Both products practice. Bearman explains his choice of were aimed at mainstream archival admin- the term: istrators with the goal of being "extremely To me the importance of the concept is practical and directly usable."3 In other that it replaces automation, or records, words, the publications were designed for or computerization with a system ori- "real" archivists, not reserved only for those ented view of the synergism of infor- with technical expertise and interests. This mation based activities .... [It] commitment to providing useful and usable also . . . expresses a ... range of new information is underscored through fre- approaches, techniques and technologies quent exhortations for readers to express which can enhance an organization's their opinions and reactions, to contribute profile and achieve its mission.1 news or articles, and to suggest ideas, top- The publishing aspects of AMI emerged ics, issues, and/or names of prospective au- naturally as products of the relentless re- thors. search required to support Bearman's in- Since the first newsletter appeared in terests, professional commitments, and Spring 1987, through the Winter 1989/90 consultancy work. Building upon his work issue, AMI has produced twelve newslet- as director of the National Information Sys- ters (average 23 pages) and nine technical tems Task Force for the Society of Amer- reports (average 89 pages). Three more re- ican Archivists and, subsequently, as deputy ports were in the final stages of publication director for information resource manage- when this review was prepared. With three ment at the Smithsonian Institution, Bear- years of work to assess, it is timely to eval- man realized that he was amassing uate the AMI output, initially from the per-

'David Bearman, "What are/is Informatics? And 2David Bearman, letter to the author, 22 March Especially What/Who is Archives & Museum Infor- 1990. matics?" Archives Informatics Newsletter 1:1 (Spring ^Archival Informatics Newsletter 1:1 (Spring 1987): 1987): 8. 1. 668 American Archivist / Fall 1990

spective of what the venture had hoped to More important than presentation is con- accomplish, and secondly, considering the tent, though the former can certainly facil- needs of the archival profession for access itate or retard absorption of the latter. From to accurate and authoritative information on the beginning the newsletter has been a developments in automation. public window into David Bearman's ,

This essay will describe and evaluate the in effect a regular selection and "down- Downloaded from http://meridian.allenpress.com/american-archivist/article-pdf/53/4/666/2748076/aarc_53_4_y32h731602772u36.pdf by guest on 29 September 2021 newsletters and the technical reports sepa- loading" of interpreted information about rately, highlighting strengths and weak- informatics-related developments and is- nesses and dealing in depth with selected sues that he feels is needed by archival and technical reports. It will then assess the museum administrators. While it was al- contribution of the AMI publications to the ways clear that Bearman would be the di- professional literature. recting force of AMI, he hoped that the quality of the publications and his own in- The Newsletter vitations would inspire contributions from The AMI newsletters, issued quarterly, others. Broader authorship would not only present news items, status and performance present multiple views but also relieve some reports, expositions, reviews, and other of the pressure of being both editor and highly analyzed and time-dated material to principal author. However, after three years, keep readers abreast of informatics within 75-80 percent of the content of AMI pub- the archival and museum environments. lications is still consistently attributable to Each newsletter comprises approximately Bearman, a fact that he finds disappoint- twenty-four letter-size pages. Graphically ing.5 and descriptively the newsletter has had What regular features does the newslet- some distracting teething problems. For ex- ter, now called Archives and Museum In- ample, it was not until late 1989 (Volume formatics, contain and what are some of 3) that the newsletter stabilized its graphic the highlights of the past three years of style, regular features, and order of presen- publication? Each issue begins with an ed- tation. The first seven or so issues vary itorial piece by David Bearman, followed considerably in one or more of the follow- by one to three articles that may comprise ing: type font and boldness, right margin material from "regular" contributors, such justification, printer quality, and line lead- as Thomas E. Brown's excellent "Machine ing. Decisions affecting the accessibility and Readable Views," or in-depth examina- retrieval of information included changes tions of software (MicroMARC:amc, to the title (Archival Informatics Newsletter MARCON, AREV, and ARGUS), usually for volumes 1 and 2, Archives and Museum 6 reviewed by Bearman. Several articles have Informatics beginning with volume 3); pa- gination scheme (sometimes continuously throughout a volume and sometimes by is- Informatics as managing editor. She facilitated the sue); and regular features that vary in head- production of publications, contributed material to the ing, content, and sequence from issue to newsletter and assisted with general editorial work, notably with Bearman's Archival Methods (Technical issue. While these matters are aesthetically Report No. 9, 1989). and logistically distracting (to catalogers in 5As mentioned previously, Bearman has asked for particular), they are minor and have been feedback and specifically invited contributions in most issues of the first three volumes of the newsletter. I remedied by a combination of evolving ed- asked him whether he had received a good response itorial expertise and experience and im- to his requests. His reply was "informally yes," par- proved desktop publishing capabilities.4 ticularly phone calls, letters, and conversations at meetings, but there have not been many contributions despite colleagues' promises and good intentions. Bearman, letter to author, 22 March 1990. 4In 1989, Lynn Cox joined Archives & Museum The review of Micro MARC:amc appears in 1:3 Archives & Museum Informatics 669

assessed information-sharing opportunities Approximately half of each issue con- for archives and museum professionals, sists of brief reports categorized under reg- specifically the work of the Conservation ular headings. Although these groupings Information Network (CIN), the Commit- have fluctuated over the life of the news- tee on Computer Interchange of Museum letter, the consistent departments are Con-

Information (CIMI), and the International ferences, Calendar, Publications, News, Downloaded from http://meridian.allenpress.com/american-archivist/article-pdf/53/4/666/2748076/aarc_53_4_y32h731602772u36.pdf by guest on 29 September 2021 Committee on Documentation (CIDOC).7 Software, Standards, and Technical Report Problems and issues in informatics are Summary. As expected, each of these seg- raised, both in articles and in editorial es- ments presents the basic who, what, when, says. The archival challenges inherent in and where facts, but also intentionally tar- the management of multi-sensory and elec- gets issues, implications, and trends of po- tronic records, particularly of online data- tential interest or concern. bases, are continuously raised and examined, Through the newsletter archivists can keep including those of appraisal, copyright, abreast of important developments in in- software dependency, national and inter- formatics and participate in discussion of national developments in policy and stan- issues as they evolve. The immediacy and dards, and the applicability of archival succinctness of the newsletter format, as principles. While all of the articles are of opposed to that of a journal, makes the in- high quality, two deserve special mention. formation timely and involving, though it The combative "Real Archivists Don't Use necessarily leaves the responsibility for in- MARC" by Frank Burke criticizes the depth exploration and follow-up with the profession's apparent fixation with the reader. MARC Archival and Manuscript Control (AMC) format to the detriment of the qual- The Technical Reports ity of what is being described and of other AMI has also sponsored the publication archival responsibilities.8 The second is a of technical reports. The nine that appeared short essay by Bearman, "Capturing Rich through Spring 1989 were published quar- Content," in which he identifies the key terly and distributed with issues of the problem of modern documentation: "how newsletter. The recent title change to Ar- to identify and acquire evidence of chives and Museum Informatics Technical processes, not just of products" and "how Reports reemphasizes the publisher's com- to represent processes and relationships, not 9 mitment to monitoring informatics devel- just entities." opments and applications for both archives Occasionally, special-focus bibliogra- and museums that he feels are major bands phies or review essays are included, such in a continuum of culturally significant in- as the very helpful ones on electronic rec- formation. The technical reports will be is- 10 ords policy and on fund raising. sued as an occasional series at intervals suited to the requirements of individual content and research parameters rather than (Fall, 1987): 46-48; MARCON in 1:4 (Winter, 1987- adhere to a Procrustean schedule. For the 88): 66-70; AREV (by J. Penny Small) in 2:1 (Spring, purposes of this review, the reports have 1988): 2-5; ARGUS in 2:4 (Winter 1988/89): 73-76. 7CIN in 2:4 (Winter 1988/89): 70-73; CIMI in 3:2 (Summer 1989):2-5; and CIDOC (by Jane Sledge) in 3:1 (Spring 1989): 2-5. 16. One might wonder about the connection of fund 83:1 (Spring 1989): 7-12. raising with informatics. Membership, development, '1:2 (Summer 1987): 22. and participation systems are automation applications "The Electronic Records Policy bibliography ap- that support this vital work in cultural organizations pears in 2:4 (Winter 1988/89): 76-79 and the review and comprise the subject matter of forthcoming Tech- essay on fund raising is found in 3:3 (Fall 1989): 11- nical Report No. 11. 670 American Archivist / Fall 1990

been divided into three groupings: (1) top- the "family" of optical media (laser-re- ical in-depth studies (five reports: Archival flective optical videodisc, CD-audio, CD- Methods, Optical Media, Collecting Soft- ROM, CD-interactive, CD-video, and op- ware, Archives and Authority Control, and tical digital disk), Bearman sets out check- Appraisal of Online Systems); (2) guides lists of criteria for assessing applications to systems requirements/specifications (four for optical media, for selecting the appro- Downloaded from http://meridian.allenpress.com/american-archivist/article-pdf/53/4/666/2748076/aarc_53_4_y32h731602772u36.pdf by guest on 29 September 2021 reports, one of which will be issued in 1990); priate technology and vendors, and for car- and (3) directories and dictionaries (three rying out an optical media conversion reports, two of which will be issued in project. Bearman also provides the reader 1990). Figure 1 provides a list of the twelve with important reference tools in addition technical reports. to the selective, but excellent, glossary and Topical studies. The inaugural report, bibliography. These include a list of pro- Optical Media: Their Implications for Ar- duction firms with archives and museum chives and Museums (Spring 1987), is de- experience, a compilation of optical media signed to inform readers about the suitability projects, and a guide to sources for regu- of optical media for archival and museum larly updated information about vendors. applications. After a clear and concise ex- Whenever possible Bearman includes ref- planation of the technical differences among erences for further reading about the topics

Figure 1

Archives & Museum Informatics Technical Reports (ISSN 1042-1459) Archival Appraisal of Online Information Systems. By Alan Kowlowitz. Report No. 7. Fall 1988. 74 pp. $20. Archival Methods. By David Bearman. Report No. 9. Spring 1989. 67 pp. $35. Archives & Authority Control. Edited by Avra Michelson. Report No. 6. Summer 1988. 62 pp. $20. Archives & Museum Data Models & Directories. By David Bearman. Report No. 10. Summer 1989. 100 pp. $35. Automated Systems for Archives and Museums. By David Bearman. Report No. 4. Winter 1987/88. 88 pp. $20. Collecting Software. By David Bearman. Report No. 2. Summer 1987. 80 pp. $20. Directory of Software for Archives & Museums. By David Bearman. Report No. 5. Spring 1988. 100 pp. Not available; superceded by Report No. 12. 1990 Directory of Software for Archives & Museums. By Lynn Cox and David Bearman. Report No. 12. Winter 1989/90. 196 pp. $45. Functional Requirements for Collections Management. By David Bearman. Report No. 3. Fall 1987. 87 pp. $20. Functional Requirements for Exhibits Management. By Rozell Overmire. Report No. 8. Winter 1988/89. 127 pp. $20. Functional Requirements for Membership, Development, & Participation Systems. By David Bearman and Gail Lord. Report No. 11. Fall 1989. 71 pp. $35. Optical Media. By David Bearman. Report No. 1. Spring 1987. 74 pp. $20. Orders should be addressed to Archives & Museum Informatics, 5501 Walnut Street, Suite 203, Pittsburgh, PA 15232. An additional $5.00 charge applies to billed orders. Payment must be in U.S. currency. The technical reports are also available from the Society of American Archivists, 600 South Federal, Suite 504, Chicago, IL 60605. Archives & Museum Informatics 671

described and frequently uses annotation to cuses upon management decisions rather highlight issues worthy of further explora- than upon technological details and is as tion. Though written in early 1987, Optical relevant today as when it was issued. Media retains most of its value with its fo- Technical Report No. 6 (Summer 1988), cus on decision making and the "Watch Archives and Authority Control, edited by this Space" approach to the issues posed Avra Michelson, comprises the proceed- Downloaded from http://meridian.allenpress.com/american-archivist/article-pdf/53/4/666/2748076/aarc_53_4_y32h731602772u36.pdf by guest on 29 September 2021 by evolving technology. The fact that it has ings of a one-day seminar on authority con- recently been reprinted attests to its contin- trol sponsored by the Smithsonian Institution uing usefulness. Bibliographic Information System (SIBIS) AMI's second technical report (Summer Archives Descriptive Standards Committee 1987), Collecting Software; A New Chal- in October 1987. While the purpose of the lenge for Archives and Museums, evolved seminar was to bring together knowledge- from an expansion of a 1985 discussion re- able speakers, users, and committee mem- port Bearman prepared for the Computer bers to define an authority control system Museum in Boston to assess the require- suitable for the seven Smithsonian archival ments and potential for developing a na- repositories, it became obvious that the pa- tional software archives. In his introduction, pers and ensuing discussion articulated the Bearman asserts the importance of software issues surrounding authority control for ar- in shaping modern society and calls for im- chives in general. Some of these are: Do mediate action to ensure its selective pres- access points for record form and function ervation for future use and study: work better for archives than those based The digital computer's] . . . impact on on subject? Does what one controls and how our daily lives has been so dra- reflect the objectives of the catalog? If so, matic . . . that few other events in hu- what is the larger purpose of the catalog? man history can be appropriately This question expresses a theme emanating compared .... However, it is not them from the seminar—the perceived link be- [the machines], but the instructions peo- tween authority control and the use of ar- ple have written for them . . . which are chives, and the ultimate impact of both upon redefining the world in which we live.11 archival survival and growth. Do better Following a cogent essay outlining the words equal better access equal more use history of software and its unique impact equal higher social value equal more re- on modern life, Bearman presents a docu- sources equal better documentation equal a mentation strategy for software based upon better society? And, if so, is this not what the characteristics, factors, and process of cultural institutions such as archives and software development and exploitation, museums are all about? followed by designs for its implementation Technical Report No. 7 (Fall 1988), Ar- by individual repositories. He then dis- chival Appraisal of Online Information cusses the requirements and considerations Systems, by Alan Kowlowitz highlights the involved in establishing a software ar- issues surrounding the appraisal of ma- chives, first defining the scope of the pro- chine-readable records through his discus- gram, then outlining the policies and sion of the effort to appraise the electronic procedures necessary for each of the major and related records comprising the archival functions. Again this report fo- New York State Computerized Criminal History System. In an introductory com- mentary, John McDonald, Director of the "David Bearman, Collecting Software: A New Automated Information Systems Division, Challenge for Archives and Museums, Archival In- Government Records Branch of the Na- formatics Technical Report No. 2 (Pittsburgh, PA: Archives & Museum Informatics, August 1985), 1. tional Archives of Canada, sharpens the 672 American Archivist / Fall 1990

reader's focus on basic issues and congrat- scription, and use. The remaining two ulates Kowlowitz on helping to "demystify chapters introduce Bearman's proposals to machine-readable records by placing them provide intellectual access to a variety of in context."12 In his case study, Kowlow- culturally important information systems in itz demonstrates that meaningful appraisal archives "without walls" and his view that decisions can only emerge when the rela- archives and archivists should provide the Downloaded from http://meridian.allenpress.com/american-archivist/article-pdf/53/4/666/2748076/aarc_53_4_y32h731602772u36.pdf by guest on 29 September 2021 tionship among machine-readable and other critical link for "cultural connectivity" record forms and their position within the within society.13 These six essays argue for context of the information system (or sys- a realignment of archival thinking and tems) underpinning program functions and methods to address the volatile interdepen- work activities are accurately identified and dent context of modern documentation, just understood. Certainly this work illustrates as traditional archival methodology emerged the expanding universe of documentation from and served the documentary needs of within which modern appraisal judgements an earlier age. must be made, adding weight to Bearman's System requirements. Technical Re- thesis that archival methodologies must re- ports Nos. 3, 4, and 8 are related works. flect a world that is increasingly function/ Report No. 4 provides the overview for system based. analyzing the requirements and for plan- David Bearman's Archival Methods, is- ning automation projects within archives and sued in Spring 1989 as Technical Report museum programs while Reports 3 and 8 No. 9, has its roots in inquiries he pursued focus on the specific applications of col- as an Andrew W. Mellon Fellow in the lections and exhibits management, respec- 1986 Research Seminar on Modern Histor- tively. ical Documentation at the Bentley Histor- Designed as a workbook for archives and ical Library. The essays presented have been museum professionals, Technical Report refreshed, rewritten, and updated with re- No. 4 (Winter 1987/88), Automated Sys- cent references, but the ideas and conclu- tems for Archives and Museums: Acquisi- sions are as provocative now as then. tions and Implementation Issues, is a Perhaps they are more likely to be appre- decision-making guide for determining the ciated as intellectual ferment intensifies in requirements to be met by larger automated archival circles in the struggle to document applications and for planning and manag- society's massive technological, social, and ing the process of automation from needs political changes. Bearman's thesis is that analysis through implementation to system our archival tasks, roles, and methods, as maintenance and updating. Designed to traditionally applied, are inadequate, and bridge the gap between the archival or mu- he proposes some adjustments in their ap- seum manager and technical expert, ena- plication and in archival thinking which, he bling each to communicate more effectively, believes, will improve archivists' position it does, however, presume a basic under- in and contribution to society. The report standing of automation features and ter- is arranged in six chapters. The first four minology. Written in a clear style, the report explore the major archival tasks of selec- gives an excellent overview of the process, tion, preservation, arrangement and de- then moves step-by-step to address the con- siderations and decisions required in each

12John McDonald, "Commentaiy," in Alan Kow- lowitz, Archival Appraisal of Online Information Sys- "David Bearman, Archival Methods, Archives and tems, Archival Informatics Technical Report No. 7 Museum Informatics Technical Report No. 9 (Pitts- (Pittsburgh, PA: Archives & Museum Informatics, Fall burgh, PA: Archives & Museum Informatics, Spring 1988), 1. 1989), 66-67. Archives & Museum Informatics 673

phase of the project. The appendixes are (Spring 1988), Directory of Software for equally valuable, being checklists for de- Archives & Museums, compares the fea- fining system requirements to vendors and tures of thirty-six software products for for identifying and selecting the data, func- museum and archives applications. Those tions, and features needed within such ma- included were limited to packages that were jor applications as accounting, cataloging specifically sold as archives/museum ap- Downloaded from http://meridian.allenpress.com/american-archivist/article-pdf/53/4/666/2748076/aarc_53_4_y32h731602772u36.pdf by guest on 29 September 2021 and description, collections management, plications and were commercially available preservation, personnel/volunteer manage- for purchase and installation prior to July ment, records management, and member- 1988. Thus the directory excluded "home ship and development. grown" systems and generic database man- Technical Reports No. 3 (Fall 1987), agement packages, as well as promising Functional Requirements for Collection potential systems that did not meet the July Management Systems, and No. 8 (Winter cutoff date. This selection decision was in- 1988/89), Functional Requirements for Ex- tentional, for one of the purposes of the hibit Management Systems (the latter by directory was to encourage a commercial Rozell Overmire) provide detailed analyses market for archives/museum software. of requirements for collections manage- The information in the directory was ment and exhibits management respec- provided by vendors as responses to a de- tively. The goal of both is to construct a tailed questionnaire prepared by Bearman, requirements statement for each application which included options such as "not ap- suitable for use within one's own institu- plicable," "not stated," and "partially tion. Collection Management Systems is or- fulfilled" to show the range of capabilities. ganized around the "life cycle" of culturally Bearman also urged vendors and readers significant materials and describes the re- alike to comment upon the quality, quan- quirements for managing these materials as tity, accuracy, and presentation of the in- they are located, evaluated, acquired, formation in the directory for future editions accessioned, described, stored, referenced, and stressed the need for purchasers to test repaired, exhibited, published, and so on. products for themselves. Exhibit Management Systems is an expan- The 1988 directory is arranged in three sion of a survey of automated systems in sections: Descriptive Listing, Comparative United States art museums and a needs- Tables (applications and utilities), and In- assessment case study developed by Ov- dexes (by hardware operating systems, ermire as her master's thesis. It is more vendors, applications, utilities). The infor- applicable to the museum environment mation is very concise and easy to use, pro- where exhibition is an essential function. vided one already knows the terminology While there is never a guarantee against and understands the nature of the functions error, these decision-making tools, de- and features offered (there is no glossary). signed especially for archives and museum It is clearly a tool for the computer literate environments, will go a long way towards to use in creating a "short list" of products minimizing problems of automation. to explore more fully, rather than a substi- Directories and dictionaries. Three of tute for developing one's own general and 14 the technical reports, Nos. 5, 10, and 12, functional requirements. are primarily reference tools (directories, dictionaries, and models) designed to help archival and museum administrators com- u1990 Directory of Software for Archives & Mu- pare and select appropriate software, data seums. Technical Report No. 12, which was not avail- able at the time this review was prepared, replaces elements, and system architecture for their the 1988 software directory with updated information automated applications. Report No. 5 and expanded explanation and analysis. 674 American Archivist / Fall 1990

The Value of Archives & Museum peatedly confirmed, but his stance is not Informatics self-indulgent. Readers are continually in- vited to react and contribute to the discus- Given this body of work, the answer to sion; and Bearman's work is published the initial question, "Do Real Archivists widely elsewhere. However, it still boils

Need Archives & Museum Informatics?" Downloaded from http://meridian.allenpress.com/american-archivist/article-pdf/53/4/666/2748076/aarc_53_4_y32h731602772u36.pdf by guest on 29 September 2021 down to one thing: if you have confidence must be overwhelmingly, resoundingly in David Bearman's exceptional achieve- "Yes!" Archivists today are coping with ments and experience in informatics and in the greatest revolution in human commu- his commitment to integrity, productivity, nication since literacy, and we must do so and quality as a researcher, critic, and ed- at an unprecedented rate and scale, driven itor, you will have confidence in AMI pub- by global social, economic, political, and lications. If not, they are still worth reading technological change. Certainly we need all for their thought-provoking views. the help we can get, and AMI represents But do real archivists read AMI? A re- the best kind of help available. It provides view of footnotes of the last two years of a unique bridge, linking the technological the American Archivist and Archivaria (up expert, the information/human communi- to Summer 1989) showed few citations and cation specialist, and the archival/museum critical comments assessing AMI work other practitioner. On a theoretical level, AMI than in articles of which Bearman himself identifies informatics problems, issues, and was the author or coauthor. However, it trends, creating textual flags to alert ar- may be too soon to use citations as an in- chives and museum professionals and rally dicator of influence. AMI did not publish them to action. Practically, it offers con- until early 1987, and there is usually a lag cepts, methods, and tools for designing time of at least a year before reviews ap- strategies and solutions to address the prob- pear, easily two or longer for readers to lems of modern documentation. synthesize information into conference pa- The structure and content of AMI pub- pers or articles of their own. lications also fill a gap. The newsletter pro- Prices also affect readership. AMI is vides hard-to-acquire, but badly needed, available by subscription at a price much technical expertise in a timely, user-friendly higher than most archival publications; the manner. The technical reports provide ex- reports cost between $20 and $45 each. Be- posure for studies, longer than most journal cause many subscribers are institutions, ac- articles, that seek to explore new technol- tual readership is diffuse and hard to identify. ogies, strategies, and ideas. Where else When asked about his subscribers and pric- could one find a forum for the suggestion ing policy, Bearman confirmed these that archivists abandon traditional appraisal impressions. Subscribers to the newsletter and preservation in favor of "natural se- have grown from 137 in 1987 to 214 in lection" as a more valid and manageable 1989 (a 56 percent increase) and those for process for determining future archives?15 the technical reports from 80 to 155 (up 94 Yes, it is true that AMI expresses David percent). Nonsubscription sales of individ- Bearman's view of which informatics is- ual technical reports totalled 500 across all sues, problems, and developments are worth titles for the 1987-89 period.16 exploring. That fact is announced and re- The price structure for AMI publications

15David Bearman, Archival Methods, Archival In- 16David Bearman, letter to author, 22 March 1990. formatics Technical Report No. 9 (Pittsburgh, PA: Considering the cost of publication (even with desktop Archives & Museum Informatics, Spring 1989), 15- capabilities), it is clear that Bearman is doing this 16. work for love rather than money. Archives & Museum Informatics 675

is sensitive to the timeliness of the material information essential for the effective man- and the relatively small market. However, agement of modern archival programs will the value-for-money ratio is extremely pos- qualify as real archivists in the future. itive. Practitioners seeking up-to-date in- AMI and its publications program are formation and proven tools for informatics providing a unique and valuable service to applications will find them to be a great the archives and museum professions, one Downloaded from http://meridian.allenpress.com/american-archivist/article-pdf/53/4/666/2748076/aarc_53_4_y32h731602772u36.pdf by guest on 29 September 2021 bargain, particularly when one considers the that is worthy of every real archivist's in- cost of poor decisions in automation mat- terest and support. While it may not be fea- ters. sible for everyone to subscribe to the Finally, can AMI publications be under- newsletter or to purchase every technical stood by real archivists? AMI publications report, it is important for archivists to en- express their well-organized content in ex- sure that they have reasonable access to AMI ceptionally clear language, often providing information through their institutions. Some easy-to-follow glossaries to facilitate un- holdings of AMI publications have been re- derstanding of a minimum of well-selected ported to the Research Libraries Informa- technical terms, but this will not overcome tion Network (RLIN) and may be available technological ignorance. However, those through interlibrary loan. Up-to-date infor- archivists with basic technological literacy mation about subscriptions and publica- will certainly develop and improve their tions is available from Archives & Museum understanding through reading AMI prod- Informatics, 5501 Walnut Street, Suite 203, ucts. It may be that only those who keep Pittsburgh, PA 15232. Telephone (412) 683- themselves informed and up-to-date with 9775. FAX (412) 683-7366.