TODO: This page lacks an introduction to the topic

Techniques

?Migration: Periodically convert data to the next-generation formats.

Emulation: Mimicking the behavior of older hardware with software, tricking old programs into thinking they are running on their original platforms.

?Encapsulation: Encase digital data in physical and software wrappers, showing future users how to reconstruct them.

Universal Virtual Computer: Archive paper copies of specifications for a simple, software-defined decoding machine; save all data in a format readable by the machine.

Useful Concepts

?Bitstream Copying: is more commonly known as "backing up your data," and refers to the process of making an exact duplicate of a digital object.

?Persistent Media: a medium like a gold disk, may reduce the need for refreshing, and help diminish losses from media deterioration, as do careful handling, controlled temperature and humidity, and proper storage.

?Technology Preservation: is based on preserving the technical environment that runs the system, including operating systems, original application software, media drives, and the like. It is sometimes called the "computer museum" solution.

?Digital Archaeology: includes methods and procedures to rescue content from damaged media or from obsolete or damaged hardware and software environments. Digital archaeology is explicitly an emergency recovery strategy and usually involves specialized techniques to recover bitstreams from media that has been rendered unreadable, either due to physical damage or hardware failure such as head crashes or magnetic tape crinkling.

?Analog Backups: an analog copy of a digital object can, in some respects, preserve its content and protect it from obsolescence, while sacrificing any digital qualities, including sharability and lossless transferability. Text and monochromatic still images are the most amenable to this kind of transfer.

?Replication: In each case, the intention is to enhance the longevity of digital documents while maintaining their authenticity and integrity through copying and the use of multiple storage locations.

?Normalization: is a formalized implementation of reliance on standards. Within an archival repository, all digital objects of a particular type (e.g., color images, structured text) are converted into a single chosen file format that is thought to embody the best overall compromise amongst characteristics such as functionality, longevity, and preservability.

?Canonicalization: is a technique designed to allow determination of whether the essential characteristics of a document have remained intact through a conversion from one format to another.