Blogs and blogging

The following is the text of an article I posted on the RMS conference blog. (Click on the title for a link)

I'm running a session at the RMS conference on blogs and blogging and the relationship between Web2.0 technologies and records management.

These issues will become increasingly important over the coming year(s) so it's great we will have the space to discuss them, air our views and perhaps even find some agreement on how we move the agenda forward.

The questions I'd like to consider are

• how useful, interesting and important are blogs/Web2.0 technologies?
• can we build genuine online communities of interest?
• is this the start of a new revolution in records/information/knowledge management?

I don't expect everyone to experts in the subject. (I'll even give you a quick overview of how they all work if necessary.) But it should be a lively, interesting and, I hope, important debate for the future of records management...so join us

The 30 Year Rule

Click on the title of this post to link to a new website set up by The National Archives to discuss the 30 Year Rule under which most government records are transferred to The National Archives and made available to the public by the time they are 30 years old.

The Prime Minister, Gordon Brown, has said that it is time to look again at whether historical records can be made available for public inspection much more swiftly than under the current arrangements.

What do you think? You can have your say by visiting TNA's website and registering your comments.

Why not register your vote with the poll on the right?

Or you can send me your comments and I'll post them on here.

Forward into 2008

Happy New Year to you all.

I've been doing a spot of gardening. You'll notice the cooler, snappier design. More of a grown-up website. What do you think?

I'm trying to make this your one-stop shop for advice, information and best practice on records management. Let me know if you find anything you think should be posted here.

All of the video links are now together at the top of the sidebar (the stuff on the right hand side)in the 'Watch this...' folder.

I looked at what the most popular searches were for people visiting this blog. By far the most popular was 'Business Classification Scheme'. You old-fashioned things! So, you'll notice a new sidebar that takes you to some excellent links that cover how to design a BCS. Good luck and happy hunting.

The second most popular search was for 'Retention Schedules'. So again, I've added a sidebar full of useful links to relevant websites. You are also extremely interested in 'Naming conventions' and, therefore, I've added a sidebar to help you find some pertinent posts. Enjoy. Please let me know if you find other interesting links.

I'll keep an eye out for what you're interested in and, where I see a pattern, I'll either draft or publish links to relevant articles. But I'm also going to look out for the latest developments and report them in depth and with a critical eye. There's never been a more exciting time to be a records manager; it's more exhilarating than lion-taming!

Why don't you make 2008 the year when you get involved? I'll be happy to publish anything about records management. It will help if your articles are relevant, informative, interesting and well-written but, hey, there are no hard and fast rules.

Have a great 2008.