Save The Past

One Floppy Disk At A Time

Problem

A massive portion of archaeological documentation created in the last century is quietly disappearing. Magnetic media decays. Drives fail. Formats become unreadable. The result: primary research records are being lost faster than they can be preserved, pushing us toward a digital dark age of archaeology.

Our Approach

We built a compact, automated ingestion system using a Raspberry Pi. The device captures data from legacy disks and drives, transfers the files to safe cloud storage, and documents the media’s contents for later reference. Once a drive is plugged in, the system handles the entire process without human intervention.

How It Works

1. A drive is connected to the Raspberry Pi.
2. The Pi automatically identifies the device.
3. All files are copied to secure local storage.
4. The system generates a notes file describing the drive’s structure and contents.
5. If internet access is available, files are synced to OneDrive immediately.
6. If offline, syncing is deferred until the next connection.

Why It Matters

Archaeological field data is irreplaceable. You only excavate a site once. If the documentation disappears, the knowledge disappears with it. Preserving these digital records ensures that researchers, historians, and future generations can continue to learn from work that cannot be repeated.

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Questions: lego67278@outlook.com