How to preserve documents and digitized.
What Is the Best Way to Preserve Historical Documents While in Storage? A preservation plan for a collection of paper documents, books, or photographs must consider both the physical and the future digital needs of the collection. Together with best practices in storing and the minimal handling of materials, digitization can increase the lifespan of fragile or deteriorating paper documents. Because handling and use of historical documents risks additional deterioration and damage, an ideal method of true preservation is keeping originals out of common use. This can be done through a combination of physical storage and digital access to reproductions. Archivists understand that digitization offers many benefits, such as ease of access, faceted search, and wide audience reach, but digitizing paper documents provides far more value to a collection than mere convenience. Proper digitization should be an ongoing part of a paper collection’s preservation plan. The benefit...