The Discipline of Organizing: Professional Edition, 4th Edition

4.5. Resources over Time

Problems of “what is the resource?” and “how do we identify it?” are complex and often require ongoing work to ensure they are properly answered as an organizing system evolves. We might need to know how a resource does or does not change over time (its persistence), whether its state and content come into play at a specified point in time (its effectivity), whether the resource is what it is said to be (its authenticity), and sometimes who has certified its authenticity over time (its provenance). A resource might have persistence, but only the provenance provided by an documented chain of custody enables questions about authenticity to be answered with authority. Effectivity describes the limits of a resource's lifespan on the time line.

Figure 4.6. Resources over Time.

Four considerations that arise with respect to the maintenance of resources over time are their persistence, provenance, authenticity, and effectivity.

Figure 4.6, “Resources over Time.” portrays the relationships among the concepts of Persistence, Provenance, Effectivity, and Authenticity.

4.5.1. Persistence

The Great Sphinx at Giza

The Great Sphinx has persisted for over four thousand years. It has survived acts of vandalism, target practice by Napoleon’s artillery, shoulder-deep burial in desert ...