1. Policy

A. To help support research and teaching at Washington State University, MASC advocates the use of digital technology in conjunction with emerging electronic storage and information retrieval systems. MASC will allow the use of its university archives, manuscripts, historical photographs, and special collections for digitizing projects to support the curriculum or for other legitimate research purposes provided these projects are compatible with the policies and procedures of the Libraries and MASC.

2. Guidelines

A. Instructors and professors wishing to use MASC's resources for classroom digitizing projects should submit a written request beforehand to the unit head that outlines the scope of the project. This should include the class name and number (including year and semester), class size, the project name (if available), the type(s) of material desired, the intended duration of the final website, and the context in which it will appear. If the classroom project will become linked to or part of another website, this should be noted. The appropriate electronic address (URL or other fixed internet addresses) for accessing the final product should be given to the unit head by the instructor or professor. These provisions also apply for non WSU scholarly projects and publications.

B. The commercial use of MASC materials for digitizing projects must be handled separately on a case-by-case basis. Any recovery costs associated with digitizing projects will be assessed the user.

C. In either case, the unit head will coordinate with appropriate MASC staff to work with classes or individuals on digitizing projects. Because of limited space, large classes or groups might have to use the facility in smaller, more manageable numbers.

D. The materials in MASC are noncirculating. Except in unusual or special circumstances, all digitizing projects must be done on site-during MASC's normal hours of operation, Monday - Friday, 8:30 - 5:00.

E. The scanning equipment used must not damage MASC materials. Even if the equipment is deemed safe for scanning, no material may be scanned if doing so would, in the judgement of appropriate MASC staff, damage it.

F. Digitizing projects must be compatible with all applicable legal and/or donor restrictions, preservation concerns, the security of the unit and its collections, and the daily operations of MASC. Material will not be made available if its use would prevent others from having reasonable access to it, if its use would unduly interfere with MASC's primary tasks (processing, cataloging, preservation, reference, etc.), or if the project would otherwise inhibit other on-site researchers.

G. The assumption is that material reproduced for classroom or scholarly projects will fall under the "fair use" provision (Title 17 U.S. Code) of the copyright law. However, for all material that does not fall into the public domain, the ultimate responsibility for making a good-faith effort to ascertain and contact the copyright holder(s) rests with the user (or the class instructor or professor). The notice that a good-faith effort was made to find unknown copyright holders for material that is actually used should be explicitly noted in the final (website) project. MASC staff will assist with copyright issues, but the final responsibility to guard against unwarranted infringement rests with the user.

H. All items and collections used in the final project or publication must be correctly cited and described. Photographs should be properly titled and noted as coming from the "Historical Photograph Collections, Washington State University Libraries" and carry the appropriate negative umber; printed materials should carry accurate bibliographic information, and it should be noted if particular items form part of a special collection within MASC (such as the Bloomsbury Collection, The Library of Leonard and Virginia Woolf, etc.); unpublished manuscript material or university archives should be correctly cited by their catalog entry, whether as a single item or by collection or corporate entry.

I. The historical, aesthetic, literary, artistic, and factual integrity of MASC materials should be maintained. Materials should not be distorted or manipulated by digital technology except by the use of standard compression software in order to conserve electronic storage space. Computer software may also be used to enhance the visual clarity of text or image. Materials should not be used in a context that is deliberately trivializing or misleading.