Conservation OnLine (CoOL)
Preservation is inherently an information-intensive praxis. When we approach the treatment of, say, an early printed book with its complex of materials and structures, the rehousing of a photographic print, the digital imaging of a brittle map, the reformatting of a sound recording, or the design of a storage or exhibition environment for collections of heterogeneous materials, we rely inevitably upon a foundation of technical knowledge drawn from a diverse body of literature. Both in order to support its own preservation program, by gathering together information needed by our own staff and in order to share valuable resources with our colleagues in the conservation field and allied professions, the Preservation Department provides some seminal information dissemination resources, which are widely used and highly valued by professionals in the international library, museum, and archives communities.

Conservation OnLine (CoOL), located at http://palimpsest.stanford.edu, is a full text library of conservation information, covering a wide spectrum of topics of interest to those involved with the conservation of library, archives, and museum materials. It also serves as the online home for a family of regional, national, and international preservation and conservation organizations as well as independent conservation information initiatives. Holdings include electronic serials, monographs, technical reports, the archives of several mailing list forums, and a directory of conservation professionals. Of special interest is "Albumen Photographs: History, Science, and Preservation," which can be considered a small-scale Knowledge Environment and which is envisioned as the first of several such resources in the area of photographic history and conservation.