NASIG Newsletter

A VIDEO IS BORN – CONFERENCE MEETING RESULTS IN LOCKSS HOW-TO FILM
Angela Slaughter Dresselhaus

My YouTube video, Configuring a LOCKSS Box, exists because there is a need within the library community to take control of digital preservation. The LOCKSS process offers a reliable and cost effective way to maintain digital archives of subscribed electronic material. Additionally, setup is neither labor intensive nor an arduous process. But, as with any new technology, there is a sense that it is only intelligible to tech-savvy individuals. The LOCKSS team knew that installation of the software was simple, but they needed a way to demonstrate this point. Their message needed to be spread, but until the 2007 NASIG conference there was not a way to inform the community.

The idea for a LOCKSS demonstration video was born over a single weekend in Louisville, Kentucky. Karen Schneider’s vision session, “Hurry Up, Please. It’s Time. — State of Emergency” set the stage for a YouTube video. Libraries are losing ownership of their electronic collections, a point covered in her presentation. LOCKSS addresses this concern directly, but there is a problem. Victoria Reich, director of the LOCKSS initiative, often expresses concern over marketing techniques that lead librarians to believe that setting up a LOCKSS box is difficult and time consuming. She needed a way to counter this marketing. During a break in the conference program Karen suggested to Vicky that the library community needed a YouTube video detailing the LOCKSS installation process. The idea was born, but someone needed to produce the video.

That is when I entered the picture. Over breakfast with the NASIG award winners, Vicky recounted her conversation with Karen and asked us if anyone was willing to help. No one spoke up immediately, so I responded. Shortly after agreeing to help with their idea, a bit of panic and wave of second guessing rolled over me. A little of this panic was justified, as I had not even visited YouTube, let alone produced a video and posted it on the site. First, I needed to familiarize myself with YouTube, digital video formats, editing software, and, of course, the LOCKSS program itself. The easiest part of this process was, in fact, setting up the LOCKSS box. Even learning how to use the digital video camera was more of a challenge than reading through the installation instructions and installing the LOCKSS software.

Creating this video was personally rewarding and caused me to think about the implications of the current electronic serials market. Libraries need to take ownership of their digital collections, and the LOCKSS initiative is a step in the right direction. Empowering librarians was my primary goal, and I hope that the library community finds that this resource helpful. See the video at YouTube, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0wdcnXrQkaI.