Over the past five years, the number of digital images converted to microfilm through the digital converter has increased significantly. In the 2007 fiscal year, over 1.3 million digital images were converted to 699 reels of microfilm. During the last fiscal year, despite staff shortages due to the pandemic, the digital converter reformatted over 3 million images on 1,573 reels of microfilm. This fiscal year will follow the same trajectory: in July, staff processed 430,199 images on over 200 reels of microfilm.
With submissions at their highest, we are in need of a temporary pause in service to reevaluate best practices. Beginning September 30, 2021, the Utah State Archives will pause the digital converter service for six weeks in order to improve the processes of submitting and providing access to records.
During the pause, RIM, Reformatting, and Division administration will hold a 2-day retreat to lay the groundwork for a clearly defined service that meets our customers’ needs. Our objective is to optimize these processes for the short term, while building the capacity and processes necessary for the transition to digital preservation. Please take a moment to complete this quick survey. We value your feedback!
The Digital Converter services will fully resume by November 15. Information about the new system guidelines and instructions will be available online then.