{"id":1821,"date":"2020-08-17T08:30:44","date_gmt":"2020-08-17T08:30:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news.dorsetcouncil.gov.uk\/dorset-history-centre-blog\/?p=1821"},"modified":"2022-07-29T08:44:20","modified_gmt":"2022-07-29T08:44:20","slug":"cyber-trees-and-virtual-woods-looking-after-your-digital-records","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/news.dorsetcouncil.gov.uk\/dorset-history-centre-blog\/2020\/08\/17\/cyber-trees-and-virtual-woods-looking-after-your-digital-records\/","title":{"rendered":"Cyber Trees and Virtual Woods: Looking after your digital records"},"content":{"rendered":"

Whilst many people have used the past few months to sort out their physical belongings, it is easy to forget that our digital estate also needs managing.\u00a0<\/span>So,<\/span>\u00a0we\u2019re sharing\u00a0<\/span>some<\/span>\u00a0practical<\/span>\u00a0tips to\u00a0<\/span>help\u00a0<\/span>manage your own digital information. This can be anything from research notes\u00a0<\/span>and<\/span>\u00a0family photos\u00a0<\/span>to emails and<\/span>\u00a0financial spreadsheets.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Why?\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/h3>\n

Digital information is more fragile than paper stored in appropriate conditions.\u00a0<\/span>Optical media<\/span>\u00a0like\u00a0<\/span>CDs and DVDs are particularly susceptible<\/span>\u00a0to damage<\/span>\u00a0and were not designed for long term storage.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

O<\/span>ver time, the bits that make up a file may become corrupt and render it unreadable. Whereas losing one piece of paper from a file would not be catastrophic, losing just one bit from a digital file may make it inaccessible.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Every piece of data stored online has an environmental impact. T<\/span>he average carbon footprint of a standard email\u00a0<\/span>is<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>4g CO2e<\/span>\u00a0(carbon dioxide equivalent).<\/span>\u00a0Not much on its own but soon adds up when an\u00a0<\/span>estimated 300<\/span>\u00a0billion emails\u00a0<\/span>are being\u00a0<\/span>sent<\/span>\u00a0globally every single day!\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

And with so much information pinging about the digital universe it can be tricky to locate that file you created last week but can\u2019t remember what you called it.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

So<\/span>\u00a0w<\/span>here do I begin?<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/h3>\n

The easiest way to start managing your digital information is to think about it each time you create a new file. Give your file a descriptive file name to help you find it again later.\u00a0<\/span>Information such as the date and author may be recorded automatically by the computer, or you may need to add it yourself.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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 <\/p>\n

What have I got<\/span>\u00a0already<\/span>?\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/h3>\n

Y<\/span>ou need to know where your information is<\/span>.\u00a0<\/span>Is it all on your computer, do you have back-ups on CDs or external hard drives? Is anything online? Do you still have floppy disks lurking?<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Can\u2019t see the virtual wood for all the cyber trees in the way?\u00a0<\/span>Get in the habit of deleting files and emails you no longer need. Unsubscribe from mailing lists you\u2019re no longer interested in.\u00a0<\/span>Reducing the volume of digital information will help you manage what you have more effectively.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Organise your\u00a0<\/span>existing\u00a0<\/span>files into folders and make sure they all have descriptive file names. You may want to write a summary description of your most important documents.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

How is it stored?<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/h3>\n

Make at least two copies of all files you feel have long-term value. One copy can stay on your laptop or computer, the other can be put onto CDs, portable hard drives or in internet storage.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Store the copies in different physical locations if possible \u2013 if disaster strikes one location your other data should still be safe. Check your files at least once a year to make sure you can read them.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>Create new media copies every five years or when necessary to avoid data loss.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

I\u2019ve got something interesting!<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/h3>\n

If you have documents that potentially have historical value, talk to us about depositing them. With digital information, the earlier you act to preserve the documents, the better.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Whilst many people have used the past few months to sort out their physical belongings, it is easy to forget that our digital estate also needs managing.\u00a0So,\u00a0we\u2019re sharing\u00a0some\u00a0practical\u00a0tips to\u00a0help\u00a0manage your own digital information. This can be anything from research notes\u00a0and\u00a0family photos\u00a0to emails and\u00a0financial spreadsheets.\u00a0\u00a0   Why?\u00a0\u00a0 Digital information is more fragile than paper stored in… Read more Cyber Trees and Virtual Woods: Looking after your digital records<\/span><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1892,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[7,11],"tags":[82,43,174,109],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.dorsetcouncil.gov.uk\/dorset-history-centre-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1821"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.dorsetcouncil.gov.uk\/dorset-history-centre-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.dorsetcouncil.gov.uk\/dorset-history-centre-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.dorsetcouncil.gov.uk\/dorset-history-centre-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1892"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.dorsetcouncil.gov.uk\/dorset-history-centre-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1821"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/news.dorsetcouncil.gov.uk\/dorset-history-centre-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1821\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3216,"href":"https:\/\/news.dorsetcouncil.gov.uk\/dorset-history-centre-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1821\/revisions\/3216"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.dorsetcouncil.gov.uk\/dorset-history-centre-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1821"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.dorsetcouncil.gov.uk\/dorset-history-centre-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1821"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.dorsetcouncil.gov.uk\/dorset-history-centre-blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1821"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}