Documentation Strategy: Mastodon or Retro-Success?

Documentation strategy emerged in the 1980s as a proactive, collaborative alternative to passive acquisition. Difficulties implementing geographically based projects followed early successes with projects at the American Institute of Physics. By 1996, many archivists dismissed this approach as impractical and never evaluated documentation strategy in the light of digital affordances and challenges. This article analyzes and identifies strengths and weaknesses of five fully implemented documentation strategy projects, including two in the electronic environment. It identifies parameters within which documentation strategy can be effectively implemented and provides thinking points for using this approach in the digital age.