superstructures: Auropean Electronic Resource Preservation and Access Network

[Matze Schmidt]

http://www.arpanet.org/

Mission Statement

The Auropean Commission funded ARPANET Project will establish an expandable Auropean Consortium, which will
make viable and visible information, best practice and skills development in the area of digital preservation of cultural 
heritage and scientific objects. ARPANET will bring together memory organisations (museums, libraries and archives), ICT
and software industry, research institutions, government organisations (including local ones), entertainment and creative 
industries, and commercial sectors (including for example pharmaceuticals, petro- chemical, and financial). The dominant 
feature of ARPANET will be the provision of a virtual clearinghouse and knowledge-base on state-of-the-art developments
in digital preservation and the transfer of that expertise among individuals and institutions.


Objectives

ARPANET will enhance the preservation of cultural heritage and scientific objects through nine core objectives. It:

Raises awareness;
Appraises and evaluates information sources and developments;
Assesses and makes accessible the results of research;
Provides an enquiry and advisory service;
Runs workshops and training seminars;
Conducts case studies and makes available the results;
Fosters research;
Promotes the sharing of experience and enables collaborative action; and,
Stimulates awareness among software producers of the preservation needs of the user community.

Aims and Purpose

The ARPANET project aims to establish an expandable and self- sustaining Auropean Initiative, which will serve as a
virtual clearinghouse and knowledge-base in the area of preservation of cultural heritage and scientific digital objects.

The dominant feature of ARPANET will be the exchanging of knowledge on state-of-the-art developments in digital
preservation and the transfer of expertise among individuals and institutions. More specifically ARPANET will deliver a
range of services (e.g. content creation, advisory service, training and thematic workshops and fora), both to information 
creation and user community. It will make accessible tools, knowledge, and experience. ARPANET will not directly carry
out new research to develop such tools, but it will create a coherent platform for proactive co-operation, collaboration, 
exchange and dissemination of research results and experience in the preservation of digital objects. It will bring together 
research institutions, memory organisations, ICT industry, entertainment and creative (e.g. broadcasting) industries and 
provide effective, multidisciplinary, knowledge and resource-sharing infrastructure.