On the Managing University Records site, we recently posted a section with Training Slides. These presentation slides offer some of the basics on what the University Archives does: we help Columbians manage their records, and we preserve and make accessible the institutional history of the University. The training decks are short and, hopefully, useful, and along the way, you can enjoy some vintage Columbia photographs.

 To start, take a look at the Records Management 101 and University Archives 101 slide decks to learn about the services we offer and the records we collect. The University Archives helps offices manage all of their current records and, eventually, transfer the records of historical value to the Archives. After completing the basics, try your luck with our favorite game: Archival or Not (or sometimes Maybe). See if you can identify which records belong in the Archives and which records you can properly and confidently dispose of.

But the University Archives collects more than paper records. Because of our reliance on electronic records, we have also posted some short training decks with best practices and helpful hints on how to manage email, name files and organize shared drives. These slides offer some “better habits” that you can use to be more efficient but also to be more aware of long-term preservation issues. While thinking about how to tackle your email inbox, enjoy some vintage photos of early communication technology at Columbia: typewriters, facsimile broadcasts, and computer labs. And in learning how to work as a team to organize files in shared drives, look to the Columbia crew team as your model: all working together and striving for efficiency and success.

 If you have any questions about records management or the University Archives, or have any ideas for future training slides you’d like to see on our website, please do not hesitate to contact us at uarchives@columbia.edu.