The Role of Standards in the Archival Management of Electronic Records

Technical standards developed by national and international standards-setting organizations to facilitate the exchange of data among computer systems could provide archivists with mechanisms for ensuring long-term access and use of information stored in electronic form. Staff at the Canadian and United States national archives and the United Nations have conducted several valuable studies in this area as well as contracting for additional investigations by outside experts. The author digests the findings of several of these studies, describing the organization of and processes followed by the principal national and international standards developers and summarizing the elements of thirteen standards identified as having the greatest potential for archival use.