This text is from the publication Permanence Through Change: The Variable Media Approach, published in 2003 by the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum and the Daniel Langlois Foundation for Art, Science, and Technology.

This text by Alain Depocas outlines the goals of the Variable Media Network from both a theoretical and administrative perspective.

The Variable Media Network is a group of organizations working together to develop and refine the variable media paradigm's methodology, standards, tools, and output for the preservation of artwork of an ephemeral nature. Indeed, this project makes sense only in a network context. A network can broaden the scope by bringing people together to share information. In this context, one network member might work on performance art, while another focuses on Net art. Likewise, including organizations of various sizes in the network makes room for a larger variety of practices. For instance, a small four-person organization might propose to document a single performer's work on videotape, while a major institution might propose to coordinate the development of metadata standards for performance documentation as a whole.

The Variable Media Network enables member organizations to contribute on three major levels. The first level involves downloading an empty structure of the network database and using it noncommercially. A member can observe how this structure works and maybe reflect and comment on what should be added, adapted, or changed. The second level entails contributing data to a central database, which is a shared pool of information. Case studies on a wide variety of works will contribute greatly to the evolution and development of the initiative. The third level implies more active involvement in developing tools and standards. For example, one member might contribute by devising a report module in the database, while another might offer to design an alternative interface using Flash; with greater involvement comes greater decision-making power. The network should be flexible rather than restrictive or complex. The price of admission into the network is simply to participate and contribute on many levels.

The development model for the questionnaire and database could be described as semi-open source. The database will be distributed in an open fashion but is restricted to noncommercial use. It will evolve in a more controlled way and a central core of participants will implement the network community's contributions in order to maintain a sharable database available to participating members. Only through a shared structure can we compare and learn from the data. In 2003, members can enroll in training workshops. Caitlin Jones, the Daniel Langlois Fellow in Variable Media Preservation at the Guggenheim Museum in 2002, will act as a mobile agent and draw on the valuable experience she has gained to offer advice and lead training sessions at partner facilities. Jones will help institutions to introduce strategies for variable media preservation, to select their own case studies, to train employees in using the variable media database effectively, and to integrate the database into their collection management system. In the year following the training workshop, members develop standards, discuss test cases, and expand the database. Meetings will be held to coincide with training events organized at network members' facilities, or with any relevant events held by members of the network.

The Variable Media Network proposes a flexible platform whereby organizations can collaborate on various levels, choosing the type of contribution that suits their specific needs. Only through such collaborations can the concept of variable media evolve and become an effective model for preserving the future.