It's a given that most of us on this list are sitting on substantial collections of VHS tapes. Thanks to the efforts of Howard Besser, Walter Forsberg, and others it has become evident just how endangered those collections are and the proportion of VHS content that is irreplaceable.
It seems that there are a few directions one can go with this situation. Some have taken to discarding their VHS collections. Others have shipped them to offsite storage or otherwise shunted them aside and are passively letting time takes its toll as they gradually disintegrate into bits. Another approach is to develop a plan to digitize the content and protect it for future use. Getting started with a preservation program need not be an overwhelming thought. This is where I think it's worth considering joining the Association of Moving Image Archivists (AMIA). As their name suggests they are a group dedicated to the preservation of moving image media, both film and video, and whereby film preservation might have once seemed like a niche field the rapid growth of VHS collections coupled with the instability of the media and the disappearance of VHS players suggest to me that having a little bit of video preservation know-how on staff is essential for almost any library (especially academic libraries). AMIA is a great organization to be a part of when learning the nuts and bolts of archival video preservation. Their members come from a wide range of areas and are a good group to network with to gain technical knowledge. The most important event on the AMIA calendar is their annual conference. This year they will meet in Savannah, GA October 8-11. One month before the National Media Market. They also have a newsletter and an active blog. Annual membership dues are: $110 individual $60 student $300 non-profit institutional $600 for-profit institutional I don't mean to bend your ear too much so here are the links to learn more about the organization and the conference. http://www.amianet.org http://www.amiaconference.com/ -- Chris Lewis American University Library 202.885.3257
VIDEOLIB is intended to encourage the broad and lively discussion of issues relating to the selection, evaluation, acquisition,bibliographic control, preservation, and use of current and evolving video formats in libraries and related institutions. It is hoped that the list will serve as an effective working tool for video librarians, as well as a channel of communication between libraries,educational institutions, and video producers and distributors.
