Application for Recognition of Screenshot Graveyard

To the committee on mobile storage,

I am writing to request formal recognition of the screenshot gallery as a distinct category of digital storage, different in function and governance from the photo gallery that shares its interface.

The Nature of the Collection

The screenshot gallery contains 412 items spanning four years of device use. These items were created at moments of perceived future need: a phone number, a confirmation code, an error message, a recipe, a price comparison, an address, several memes, and a large number of items whose category is no longer determinable from the thumbnail.

Each screenshot was taken as a form of note-taking. The note-taking took one second. The retrieval process, if attempted, would require scrolling through 412 items, which has not been attempted in the history of this device.

The Governance Problem

The screenshot gallery is governed by a single rule: screenshots are added when needed and are never deleted because deleting them seems like the wrong decision to make in the moment of deletion.

The moment of deletion never arrives. The collection grows.

The Request

I am requesting recognition that the screenshot gallery is an archive rather than a reference library. Archives contain items of potential historical interest that are not actively used. The screenshot gallery matches this description.

Recognition of the archive status would allow for the following:

• No new screenshots would be taken with the expectation of future use unless that use is immediate.
• Existing screenshots would be understood as records rather than resources.
• Deleting the 2022 confirmation number would be acceptable without needing to first confirm it is no longer needed.

Current Status

The application is prepared. Before submitting, a screenshot of the draft was taken for reference. It is now item 413.