Kaj Hagman, editor of Vasabladet magazine, in his office, 1963. Image: Rafael Olin. SLS/Rafael Olins fotosamling

Advice on archiving

Here you can find advice on how to prepare your material for donation, or how to best archive your material yourself.

Physical photographs and documents

Store archival material in a cool place protected from fire, water, moisture, strong light, dust, dirt and bad air.

We are happy to provide practical advice on the acquisition of appropriate materials (covers, folders, pockets, etc.) and information on inventorying archives and libraries.

Inventory, organise and preserve

First, inventory the material. Divide it into thematic units and organise it chronologically. If the material is already ordered in a certain way, do not change it.
Clear documents and manuscripts of anything that will ruin them in the long run, such as paper clips, rubber bands and plastic pockets.
Remove tape if it can be done without damaging the documents.
Protect seals with tissue paper.
Cover waxed paper booklets and diaries with wrapping paper.
Eliminate duplicates.
Place paper documents in archive-proof covers and folders.
Remove letters from their envelopes and unfold them. Save the envelopes if they contain important information.
List letters alphabetically and/or chronologically.
Store newspaper clippings and other printed material as separate entities.
Get a fireproof filing cabinet for the oldest documents, such as wills, bills of sale, etc.

How to store physical photographs

Photographs are usually glued in albums or loose in boxes. Label photographs with information about the subject, people, year, location and photographer. Make notes on the protective pocket or on the back of the picture with a soft pencil. Do not thumb the negatives, use protective gloves.

Negatives (glass, nitrate, acetate and polyester) are stored at an even temperature of 15-18°C, (not above 22°C and at a relative humidity of about 45%, not above 60%). They are placed in negative pockets made of acid-free paper or polyester/polyethylene. Nitrate and acetate negatives are sensitive, they should be stored in an airy place and separated from other photographic material. Black and white negatives can be stored at normal room temperature, while colour negatives should be stored in a cool place. Do not touch the negatives; use protective gloves.

Positives are best stored in their albums or in protective pockets.

Diapositives are stored in a frame or in protective pockets.

How to store books

Book bindings handled with care last for hundreds of years. Books published before the middle of the 19th century are printed on durable paper made of rag. In the case of older valuable book collections, it is a good idea to make a catalogue or database of the books, not least because of the risk of theft. Information on signatures and ex libris can help identify a book if it turns up in an antiquarian bookshop.

Do not place books too close together on the bookshelf. Large format books can be stored horizontally.
Protect books from dust, dirt, direct sunlight, pests, moisture and mould. A bookcase is best for valuable book collections.
Remove bookmarks, paper clips and tape, which over time destroy the paper.
Also remove newspaper clippings, locks of hair and dried plants.
Do not dust with a damp cloth! A gentle cleaning with a duster is fine.
Broken books can be stored in a protective book capsule.
If you want to have a broken book repaired or rebound, it is important to respect the historical character of the binding. The old cover should always remain. Use a professional bookbinder to assess the appropriate measures.

Digital material

Decide what you want to save

Archival materials such as letters, photographs, documents and other private records are now largely in digital form. When archiving these documents, you make conscious choices about what you save and how you organise and store the material. Make a plan for what you save and create a routine so that when you create a document, you already know how you want to save it, which is faster than a retroactive review. The same files can be on different storage devices and cloud services. The number of photographs can be unmanageable unless a selection is made at regular intervals. Delete spam, newsletters, adverts from emails. Separate private emails from work-related emails.

Create a structure for the files

The sheer volume of digital documents created is a challenge, so be systematic and consistent when organising. Files can be organised according to material entities, such as texts belonging to a manuscript (drafts, versions, proofs, letters, background material), photographs and other documents in a folder. Files can also be organised by type of material so that text (manuscripts, diaries, speeches), photographs, audio and audio-visual and multimedia material are stored in separate folders. Save the documents related to a completed project separately from those in progress.

Describe the content

Descriptive information makes it easier to organise and interpret the material in the future. Make sure to name and label folders and files with descriptive information about the content, people, place and time. Some of the information is generated automatically, such as file creation time and format, and is updated when saved.

Making backups and keeping file formats up to date

The storage of digital material is complicated by the rapid obsolescence of storage media, software and file formats. Storage media can also break or become unmanageable after some time. Active measures are therefore required to save the digital information in a readable and usable format. Review the files and, if necessary, transfer them to a new storage medium at regular intervals. The files should be in an accessible format so that the content can be opened, read and used. Update the files when you change software.

Back up the material on an external hard drive, for example. Remember virus protection!

SLS archives follow the National Digital Library’s recommendations for long-term storage.

Text:

TXT: *.txt; ODT: OpenDocument Text (*.odt, *.fodt); Microsoft Office Suite: DOC/DOCX: (*.doc, *.docx); RTF: Rich Text Format (*.rtf); PDF/A (*.pdf); CSV; EPUB

Pictures:

JPEG (Joint Photographic Experts Group; TIFF (Tagged Image File Format); PNG (Portable

Network Graphics); DNG; GIF

Sound:

WAV (Windows Wave); MPEG1/2 (MP3); AAC (.mp4, .m4a); FLAC; AIFF; WMA

Video:

MPEG-1; MPEG-2; MPEG4 (H.264, mp4); DV; WMV