Forensic approaches to evaluating primary sources in internet history research: reconstructing early Web-based archival work (1989–1996)

Abstract

This article examines early digital archival practices, especially those related to historical sources digitised and published to the World Wide Web in the 1990s. Without well-documented professional standards for the digitisation and publication of archival materials online during this period, many archival workers developed innovative, yet idiosyncratic methods of arranging and presenting archival material. Using historical methods informed by digital forensics, this article reconstructs the development practices of one such group of archival workers. The article is structured around a case study examining digitised archival materials pulled from the personal records of American psychologist Timothy Leary, published to Leary.com in the mid-1990s. Forensic analysis of the interface and contents of Leary.com is used to ascertain the dates of development, as well as the specific techniques employed. Next, analysis of the archival arrangement bestowed upon the Web site contents is compared against the professional guidelines generally followed by American archivists, highlighting key differences between the ad-hoc practices of non-institutional archivists and the more formalized procedures followed by peers at established institutions. In conclusion, the article argues that this case study is valuable insofar as it establishes both methodological and historical precedents for deeper engagement with primary sources in Internet history research.

Keywords:

• Digital archives
• digital forensics
• Web history
• American counterculture

Disclosure statement

This manuscript is original and has not been published before. It is a revised and expanded version of a conference presentation delivered at the 2019 Research Infrastructure for the Study of Archived Web Materials conference in Amsterdam, Netherlands. The author received financial support for travel to the conference from the Rutgers University School of Communication and Information. There are no known conflicts of interest associated with this publication and there has been no additional significant financial support for this work that could have influenced its outcome. The author confirms that the manuscript has been read and approved by all named authors and that there are no other persons who satisfied the criteria for authorship but are not listed. The author confirms that due consideration has been given to the protection of intellectual property associated with this work and that there are no impediments to publication, including the timing of publication, with respect to intellectual property. In so doing the author confirms that all regulations of relevant institutions concerning intellectual property have been upheld.

The Corresponding Author is the sole contact for the Editorial process (including Editorial Manager and direct communications with the office). The corresponding author has provided a current, correct email address, which is accessible by the Corresponding Author.

Notes

1 It should be noted that the World Wide Web is distinct from the Internet. The Internet arises from efforts at making disparate computer networks inter-operational, while the Web is a particular way of transmitting information over the Internet using Hypertext Transfer Protocol. For a more robust history of the social construction of internetworking and the Internet, see Abbate (1999). For a more robust account of the Web, see Bory et al. (2016).

2 Early versions of ASCII dating back to the 1960s generally used 7-bit encoding schemes, but 8-bit character sets grew more common following their implementation in IBM PCs in the 1980s.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

James A. Hodges

James A. Hodges is a PhD candidate in the School of Communication and Information at Rutgers University. His research combines history of computing with archival studies in order to better understand the evidentiary value of born-digital sources.