IASA conference 2011

Frankfurt am Main, September 2011

The 42nd IASA conference was held in Frankfurt am Main, Germany, and its theme concerned digital decision making in sound and audiovisual collections.  The sessions took place at two venues about 20 min. apart on foot: German National Library (Deutsche Nationalbibliothek) and the Hessian Broadcasting (Hessischer Rundfunk).

There were many interesting presentations on diverse subjects such as:
•    semantics and Linked Open Data
•    surveys, data they collect, and how it can be used
•    new projects and ways of creating access to AV collections
•    saving and modernising radio archives
•    creating mobile platforms for AV material stored in archives or museums
•    unusual ways of saving special AV collections from extinction and many others. 

There were also practical tutorials, led by renowned experts in their fields, such as Nadja Wallaszkovits, Guy Maréchal, Dietrich Schüller, and others.  It was a pity that tutorials and presentations were held in parallel sessions, and one couldn’t be in two places at the same time...

At the General Assemblies of IASA one of the most important topics was the discussion of its new constitution and proposed changes in it.  The changes will also affect BAAC, as under the new constitution there will be no affiliated organisations (at the moment BAAC is an affiliated organisation of IASA), and BAAC will have to decide what status it will have with IASA.

This year was the election year for a new IASA Board, and the new president of IASA is Jacqueline von Arb from Norway.  Details about the other new board members are available on the IASA website.

BAAC members from Estonia and Sweden also participated in this year’s IASA conference.

Zane Grosa
National Library of Latvia
Vice-president, BAAC