How should electronic records of continuing or long-term value be cared for in electronic formats?
Electronic files are particularly fragile due to hardware and software obsolescence, unstable media formats, and the ease with which files can be erased either knowingly or unknowingly. A consistent backup plan is essential to the preservation of digital materials. Long term preservation requires migration across software versions and media formats. It is a good idea to save files in open, non-proprietary formats such as ASCII and XML.
