A MITH Digital Dialogue

Tuesday, September 15, 12:30-1:45

MITH Conference Room, McKeldin Library B0135

“At Glance at the Current State of Video Game Preservation”

by RACHEL DONAHUE

A number of cultural institutions have begun to take an interest in videogame preservation–but before materials make it to the archives, they are managed by their creators. Understanding what the videogame industry itself is doing with the concept art, tools, and other records they create is an important step to ensure that these increasingly important artifacts are preserved for future generations. In this talk Donahue will discuss findings from her preliminary survey of videogame industry (and player community) preservation and records management practices.

RACHEL DONAHUE is a doctoral student at the University of Maryland’s iSchool, researching the preservation of complex, interactive digital objects. She received a BA in English and Illustration from Juniata College in 2004, and an MLS with a specialization in archival science from UMD in 2009. Rachel is a Research Assistant at the Maryland Institute for Technology in the Humanities, currently supporting the Preserving Virtual Worlds and Computer Forensics and Born-Digital Content in Cultural Heritage Collections projects. Additionally, she supports the research and communications activities of the National Archives and Records Administration’s Center for Advanced Systems and Technology.

Coming up @MITH 9/29, Zita Nunes (English and Comparative Literature), “The Harlem Renaissance in Second Life”

Note: there will be no talk next week so as to avoid conflict with the university town hall.

View MITH’s complete Fall Speakers Schedule here:

http://www.mith2.umd.edu/programs/mith_speakers_fall_2009.pdf

All talks free and open to the public!

Contact: Neil Fraistat, Director, MITH (www.mith.umd.edu, mith@umd.edu, 5-8927).