Stanford to digitally archive priceless collection of 15,000 old games

Stanford University and the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) will soon embark on a two-year effort to digitally preserve one of the most extensive collections of classic video and computer games in the world. The subject of this archival effort is the legendary Stephen Cabrinety collection. Stephen M. Cabrinety (1966-1995) privately collected software across computer, console and handheld devices from his teenage years all the way through his death. Cabrinety founded one of the first software preservation groups, the Computer History Institute for the Preservation of Software (C.H.I.P.S.) in 1989, his vision being to permanently hold his collection for researchers of the future. Cabrinety managed to collect over 15,000 pieces of software (games and otherwise) before his death in 1995. Cabrinety's family donated the collection to Stanford in 1998, where it has been held since. Archiving will consist of capturing exact digital copies of the data present on each game's medium, as well as digital photography of its packaging and included paperwork and ephemera. More info here.