Editorial

The third issue of Preservation, Digital Technology & Culture in 2023 brings three articles that deal with the topics of information permanence in case of preprints with digital object identifiers (DOI) and the consequences of information modification or manipulation in case of preprints removal, an analysis about Pakistani librarians’ awareness about digital preservation, and the usage of social networks such as Instagram in preserving cultural heritage, building cultural collections and related library activities.

Our first article in this issue is entitled “The ‘silent’ removal of bibliometric information of three SSRN preprints related to peer review, and then their full reinstatement” by Jaime A. Teixeira da Silva (independent researcher). This article deals with an early analysis of digital information permanence in case of preprints, which are being increasingly used by scholars for faster sharing of academic research, before publication of final articles. In recent years the usage of preprints has risen in online information sharing, due to interruptions in work processes caused by various global crises. The importance of the possibility of pre-publishing contemporary scholarship has become even more urgent, such as in the case of information related to the Covid-19 pandemic. Contemporary research practice shows that Digital Object Identifiers (DOI) are extensively used nowadays for preprints, so dedicated servers exist to handle DOIs for preprints. This suggests that authors and publishers trust and rely on digital permanence of preprints. This article describes three preprints by the same authors related to peer review that were withdrawn (i.e., retracted) by the publisher, without clear explanation or proper notice about it. Following queries to the authors and SSRN, the three preprints were reinstated in about February 2023. This case study shows the problems in contemporary scholarly publishing, as well as the risks of opaque preprint withdrawals, which can cause a lack of trust in preprints publication, but also in the already established systems of persistent identifiers.

In our second feature Rafiq Ahmad, of Bacha Khan University, Pakistan, and Muhammad Rafiq, of University of The Punjab, Pakistan, present an analysis of Pakistani librarians’ awareness about digital preservation key concepts. Their article “Awareness about digital preservation among Pakistani librarians” deals with the current level of awareness of librarians in Pakistani universities about strategies, tools and standards used in digital preservation. The authors start from the hypothesis that awareness, that is knowledge about key concepts and best practices, about digital preservation is a necessity today for any effective and efficient work in preserving heritage in memory institutions. The survey was conducted on a target group of librarians working in Pakistani universities, specifically the librarians working in the central libraries of public sector universities and degree awarding institutions (DAIs) of Pakistan established before 2010. The survey was based on a questionnaire, which was developed after reviewing the relevant literature and was pilot tested in selected libraries. Responses from 178 individuals were received from 63 out of 70 universities and DAIs, indicating a sufficient number of participants and the overall representative level of included institutions. The authors conclude that there is a good level of awareness of different components of digital preservation among the target group, which itself is a foundation for developing the digital preservation strategies and long-term programs in Pakistani memory institutions.

Yeni Budi Rachman, Shuri Mariasih Gietty Tambunan and Tamara Adriani Salim, all of Universitas Indonesia, Indonesia, and Mad Khir Johari Abdullah Sani, of MARA Technological University, Malaysia, conclude this issue with the article “Content Analysis of Libraries’ Instagram Posts: Cultural Collection, Activities, and Preservation of Cultural Heritage”. Social networks inevitably influenced cultural and scientific institutions, after they changed the everyday life and behaviour of most people in the world, so this article pays attention to this global phenomenon but from the perspective of memory institutions. The focus is on Instagram, as one of the most popular networks, which in particular is used by academic libraries due to its popularity among younger students, both millennials and post-millennials. Instagram could be used to reach younger patrons through the use of stories, feeds, carousels and repostings; it also enables users to list hashtags that represent and describe images or videos that they post, which makes Instagram posts more easily discoverable. The authors used a content analysis method by coding the images posted on academic libraries’ Instagram accounts, to analyse Instagram content in an effective way. They selected libraries from the top 100 universities listed in the Times Higher Education Impact Rankings 2022: Sustainable Cities and Communities. Among the findings of this article it is important to stress the public perception of institutions’ cultural functions, beside their primary role for educational and research purposes, reflected in Instagram posts and published images as well as the promotion of culture, cultural heritage, history and diversity that way.