Editing 1909: Digital Resource Lifespan

{{comic
| number    = 1909
| date      = October 30, 2017
| title     = Digital Resource Lifespan
| image     = digital_resource_lifespan.png
| titletext = I spent a long time thinking about how to design a system for long-term organization and storage of subject-specific informational resources without needing ongoing work from the experts who created them, only to realized I'd just reinvented libraries.
}}

==Explanation==

In this chart, [[Randall]] laments the tendency of digital resources to quickly become obsolete or non-functional.  By taking a general subject, such as xkcd's core subjects of "romance, sarcasm, math, and language", one can see that a useful tool such as a smartphone or computer app or interactive CD-ROM (essentially, software) does not have the lasting power of printed books (e.g. textbooks, for many general subjects) and microfilm/microfiche.  The printed resources, not having to rely on a computerized platform for use, are far more reliable despite being less mobile and taking up physical space. The only digital source which is still working is {{w|Portable Document Format}} (aka PDF) which encapsulates fixed layout flat documents, and is supported for years already by {{w|Adobe Systems}} and is part of {{w|International Organization for Standardization|ISO}} standards, so has a widespread support, and should be still viewable in foreseeable future.

Archive.org refers to {{w|The Internet Archive}}, a non-profit organization that maintains the {{w|Wayback Machine}}, one of the largest archives of the {{w|World Wide Web}}. When a website is taken offline, copies of its content can often be found backed-up on the Wayback Machine. The Wayback Machine is primarily designed to back up {{w|Website|websites}}, however, and will often not be able to save information stored in a site's {{w|Database|databases}}, as alluded to in the comic. The Internet Archive has a part for non-website archives, but it cannot hold recent databases either due to copyright problems.

The title text makes a statement that libraries do not require the support of ''original'' authors/experts to organize and store vast resources for any subject imaginable.  This is true, but omits the fact that ongoing efforts are required by experts in information organization and storage -- namely, librarians.  Physical books and microfilm/microfiche need controlled storage environments, manual handling for storage, retrieval, distribution (in library terms, "circulation"), and the like.  Thus, a library can require significant resources in personnel and facilities, but is usually seen as a "public good" for the benefit of society; thus, many communities and educational institutions invest in creating and maintaining a library despite the costs.

==Table==

{| class="wikitable"
!style="width:20%"|Caption
!style="width:20%"|Type of Resource
!style="width:60%"|Explanation
|-
|Book on Subject
|{{w|Book|Physical Books}}
|This is the most familiar physical resource and used as the baseline for other (digital) resources.
Under optimal conditions, a book can last indefinitely for future generations; there are books from the ancient times that are still readable today.
|-
|<nowiki>[Subject].pdf</nowiki>
|{{w|Portable Document Format}}
|This is the most familiar digital resource, with the probable exception of the internet as a whole. A format originally developed by Adobe, the majority of the format is now an {{w|Portable_Document_Format#History_and_standardization|ISO standard}} which means a compliant reader and writer can be made independently (which avoids the majority of the pitfalls described on later resources).
A PDF file is designed to be portable (it is even in the acronym), which means unless the creator of the PDF uses a web-only feature (which is non-standard), it can be opened everywhere a PDF reader is found. Authors may also opt for a stricter, "archival" version ({{w|PDF/A}}) which ensures that both required files are placed on the same PDF file and only documented formats are used to prevent the reliance on non-standardized formats.
|-
|<nowiki>[Subject] Web Database</nowiki>
|{{w|Database}}
|Another type of a digital resource which is, in itself, is like a digital library. Unlike a physical library however, it is usually only stored in a single file or server (there are instances that the database is distributed, but it is rare), which means that a failure to that server means that the database is wiped out, not to mention the gigantic space it takes (that is why the whole database are not stored in a digital archive, like the Internet Archive). 
Additionally, unlike PDFs, there are almost-infinite ways of storing and retrieving data in a database, which means that when the method used becomes unsupported (like the Java scenario, which is of now is completely unusable in web browsers), the data in it is effectively lost (whether or not the data-in-question is still physically on the server). Also noted is that the 
|-
|<nowiki>[Subject] Mobile App</nowiki>
<small>(Local University Project)</small>
|{{w|Mobile app|Mobile App}}
|A type of digital resource that expands upon the idea of a web database. It allows easy access on a mobile device, however, as it is stated that it is a local university project, which means that support for it lasts only at most for a few years (which is not enough to maintain an application).
Additionally, {{w|Operating System|Operating Systems}} can get obsolete (like the {{w|Symbian}} platform used on older {{w|Nokia}} phones) or critical changes to it breaks older applications (like on the [http://www.bbc.com/news/technology-41319675 Apple iOS]).
|-
|<nowiki>[Subject] Analysis Software</nowiki>
|{{w|Application software|Desktop Application}}
|A type of executable program that is found on desktop systems. It allows reliable access on a desktop system, which means that (assuming the program is offline) it can survive on its own. However, {{w|Operating System|Operating Systems}} can get obsolete (like the {{w|Classic Mac OS}} platform used on older {{w|Macintosh|Mac}} computers) or critical changes to it breaks older applications (like the new security features on {{w|Microsoft Windows|Windows}} which breaks older non-compliant programs).
|-
|<nowiki>Interactive [Subject] CD-ROM</nowiki>
|{{w|Application software|Desktop Application}}, {{w|CD-ROM|CD-ROMs}}
|A CD can hold anything from music to videos to applications. It also allows better offline access, and such were used in the 1990s and the early 2000s. It is still a fancy desktop application, which means that the situation on the analysis software applies here, not to mention the fact that a new invention can replace an obsolete one (for example, {{w|Microsoft Encarta}} was discontinued in 2010 due to the ease-of-access of {{w|Main Page|Wikipedia}}).
Additional issues mentioned are that CDs can become "{{w|Disc rot|scratched}}", in which case, the data becomes corrupted or unreadable. Also, many modern laptops do not have CD-ROM drives anymore, making it difficult to use CDs as a storage medium.
Additionally, this also covers the changes in a physical system: in the 1980s, {{w|Floppy disk|floppy diskettes}} were used, which was replaced in the 1990s by the CDs and DVDs, which then was replaced by {{w|Thumb drive|thumb drives}} in the 2000s, which is then supplemented (and in some cases, replaced entirely) by wireless device-to-device transfers (like {{w|Bluetooth}}) and internet file transfers using online storage (like {{w|Dropbox}} and {{w|Google Drive}}).

|-
|<nowiki>Library Microfilm [Subject] Collection</nowiki>
|{{w|Microfilm}}
|This is a physical resource used by libraries to preserve (or to create a copy of) a collection, usually those things that are rare or would cause a social or political issue when damaged. Although great preservation is needed to prevent damage to a film, the system used is standardized and knowledge to build a reader or a printer off a microfilm is widely available, like a PDF file. This comparison might look like a physical version of PDFs: standardized, common (books can be of any size imagined) format.
|-
|}

==Transcript==
:My access to resources on [SUBJECT] over time:

:[Below, a timeline and a graph with gray bars is shown:]

:[1980s-past 2020:] 
:Book on subject

:[Early 2000s-past 2020:] 
:[SUBJECT].pdf 

:[2000-2010:] 
:[SUBJECT] web database  
::Site goes down, backend data not on archive.org
::[Small bar, 2000-2016/17:] 
:::Java frontend no longer runs

:[2010-2015/16:] 
:[SUBJECT] mobile app (Local university project) 
::Broken on new OS, not updated

:[2000-2010:] 
:[SUBJECT] analysis software
::Broken on new OS, not updated

:[Late 1990s-late 2000s:] 
:Interactive [SUBJECT] CD-ROM 
::CD scratched; new computer has no CD drive anyway.

:[1980s-past 2020:] 
:Library microfilm [SUBJECT] collection

:[Caption below the panel:]
:It's unsettling to realize how quickly digital resources can disappear without ongoing work to maintain them.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Timelines]]