(Semi-)Automated digital preservation archives for small institutions and private users

Large heritage institutions have been addressing the demands posed by digital preservation needs for some time. In contrast small institutions and private users are less prepared to handle these challenges. An increasing quantity of digital collections is held by small institution with limited know-how and awareness of digital preservation. Digital assets are becoming more important for an increasing number of institutions in the long run (e.g. legal obligation, intellectual property or business data). The limited resource in these institutions for archiving drives the need for new approaches of (fully or semi)-automated archiving systems. Research and development in the area of digital preservation is mainly done by memory institutions and large businesses. Consequently, the available tools, services and models are developed to meet the demands of professional environments. Automated archiving systems are needed for institutions with little professional know how in digital preservation. Important aspects are hiding the complexity of the processes, providing support for decision making and automated error handling. The automation of preservation workflows raises a number of research questions, e.g. metadata management, quality assurance and tolerable limit of loss of preservation actions and automated preservation planning

D3.2 Cost Concept Model and Gateway Specification

This document introduces a Framework supporting the implementation of a cost concept model against which current and future cost models for curating digital assets can be benchmarked. The value built into this cost concept model leverages the comprehensive engagement by the 4C project with various user communities and builds upon our understanding of the requirements, drivers, obstacles and objectives that various stakeholder groups have relating to digital curation. Ultimately, this concept model should provide a critical input to the development and refinement of cost models as well as helping to ensure that the curation and preservation solutions and services that will inevitably arise from the commercial sector as ‘supply’ respond to a much better understood ‘demand’ for cost-effective and relevant tools. To meet acknowledged gaps in current provision, a nested model of curation which addresses both costs and benefits is provided. The goal of this task was not to create a single, functionally implementable cost modelling application; but rather to design a model based on common concepts and to develop a generic gateway specification that can be used by future model developers, service and solution providers, and by researchers in follow-up research and development projects.<p></p> The Framework includes:<p></p> • A Cost Concept Model—which defines the core concepts that should be included in curation costs models;<p></p> • An Implementation Guide—for the cost concept model that provides guidance and proposes questions that should be considered when developing new cost models and refining existing cost models;<p></p> • A Gateway Specification Template—which provides standard metadata for each of the core cost concepts and is intended for use by future model developers, model users, and service and solution providers to promote interoperability;<p></p> • A Nested Model for Digital Curation—that visualises the core concepts, demonstrates how they interact and places them into context visually by linking them to A Cost and Benefit Model for Curation.<p></p> This Framework provides guidance for data collection and associated calculations in an operational context but will also provide a critical foundation for more strategic thinking around curation such as the Economic Sustainability Reference Model (ESRM).<p></p> Where appropriate, definitions of terms are provided, recommendations are made, and examples from existing models are used to illustrate the principles of the framework

Digital preservation : preservation planning in the OAIS model

Zsfassung in dt. SpracheDigital objects have become the dominant way that we create, shape, and exchange information. They form a central part of our economy, and are becoming increasingly important for a longer period of time. The ever-growing heterogeneity and complexity of digital object formats together with rapid technological changes turn the preservation of digital information into a pressing challenge. The challenge is to keep electronic data accessible, viewable, and usable for the future, to ensure the survival of our digital artifacts when the original software or hardware to interpret them correctly becomes unavailable.A reference model for an archival system dedicated to preserving and maintaining access to digital information over the long term was published in 1999 by the Consultative Committee for Space Data Systems (CCSDS). In 2003 the Reference Model for an Open Archival Information System (OAIS) was adopted as ISO 14721:2003. The primary goal of an OAIS is to preserve information for a designated community over an indefinite period of time. In the community of digital preservation the OAIS model has been widely accepted as a key standard reference model for archival systems.Digital Preservation - the process of keeping electronic material accessible and usable for a certain period of time - has turned into one of the most pressing challenges within the field of digital repositories. A range of tools exists today to support the variety of preservation strategies such as migration or emulation.Yet, different preservation requirements across institutions and settings make the decision on which solution to implement very difficult. The Planets Preservation Planning approach allows the evaluation of all kinds of preservation actions against individual requirements and the selection of the most suitable solution. It enforces the explicit definition of preservation requirements and supports the appropriate documentation and evaluation by assisting in the process of running preservation experiments.This master thesis shows the Planets Preservation Planning approach in relation to the OAIS reference model. It examines the information flows in the OAIS Preservation Planning entity and with other functional entities. This work presents trigger events for preservation planning activities and the according information flow in the OAIS model. It further shows the implementation of the Develop Preservation Strategies and Standards function of the Preservation Planning functional entity through the Planets Planning approach. Moreover, the concept of a Knowledge Database is introduced and the planning approach is analysed in relation to Trustworthy Repositories Audit & Certification: Criteria and Checklist (TRAC) and Catalogue of Criteria for Trusted Digital Repositories from Nestor.Wesentliche Teile unseres kulturelles Erbe wie auch wirtschaftlich oder rechtliche wichtige Informationen liegen immer häufiger ausschließlich in elektronischer Form vor. Auch abseits von Museen, Bibliotheken und Archiven wächst die Zahl von Institutionen aus unterschiedlichen Bereichen, die die Notwendigkeit erkennen, digitale Informationen langfristig zu bewahren.Die rasante Entwicklung von Software und Hardware, vor allem aber von Datenformaten gefährdet die langfristige Verwendbarkeit von digitalen Objekten. Digitale Langzeitarchivierung ist in den letzten Jahren zu einem aktiven Forschungsgebiet geworden, in dem Lösungsansätze für die langfristige Archivierung von digitalen Informationen untersucht werden. Das Hauptaugenmerk der Forschung für Langzeitarchivierungsstrategien liegt auf Migration und Emulation von digitalen Objekten.Die Auswahl von geeigneten Strategien und der verwendeten Werkzeuge für eine spezifische Sammlung von Objekten ist ein komplexe Aufgabe, die von den spezifischen Anforderungen einer Situation abhängig ist. Im Planets Projekt wurde eine Planungsmethode entwickelt, mit der eine objektive, nachvollziehbare und wiederholbare Bewertung von unterschiedlichen Strategien und Werkzeugen für spezifischen Anforderungen durchgeführt werden kann.Das OAIS Modell stellt ein Referenzmodell für ein Archivierungssystem dar, mit dem primären Ziel, Informationen für eine ausgewiesene Zielgruppe für unbestimmte Zeit zu erhalten. Im Bereich der digitaler Bibliotheken bildet das Modell ein Standardreferenzmodell und wurde 2003 als ISO Standard 14721:2003 aufgenommen. Etliche Entwicklungen für Archivierungslösungen basieren auf diesem Modell, aber keine dieser Entwicklungen besitzt eine klare Vorgehensweise für das Evaluieren und Auswählen von Langzeitarchivierungsstrategien.In dieser Arbeit wurde die Plantes Planungsmethode in Beziehung zum OAIS Modell gesetzt. Die Informationsflüsse zwischen den einzelnen Schritten der Planungsmethode und den Einheiten des OAIS Modells werden aufgezeigt. Ereignisse im Umfeld eines Archives, die eine Planung von neuen Strategien oder die Überprüfung von existierenden Strategien erfordern, werden in dieser Arbeit aufgezeigt. Die notwendigen Planungsaktivitäten werden beschrieben und die Auswirkungen von neuen oder veränderten Lösungsstrategien für digitale Sammlungen werden anhand der Planungsmethode und des OAIS Modells aufgezeigt. Das Konzept einer Wissenbasis zur Unterstützung der Bewertung von Archivierungsstrategien wird präsentiert. Zudem wird untersucht, inwiefern Audit und Zertifizeriungskriteren anhand von zwei Katalogen (TRAC und Nestor) durch die Planets Planungsmethode unterstützt werden.8

A cost model for small scale automated digital preservation archives: Paper - iPRES 2011 - Singapore

Assessing the costs of preserving a digital data collection in the long term is a challenging task. The lifecycle costs consist of several cost factors. Some of them are difficult to identify and to break down. In this paper we present a cost model especially for small scale automated digital preservation software system. The cost model allows institutions with limited expertise in data curation to assess the costs for preserving their digital data in the long run. It provides a simple to use methodology that considers the individual characteristics of different settings. The cost model provided detailed formulas to calculate the expenses. The model supports the detailed calculation of the expenses for the near future and helps to identify the cost trend in the medium and long run (e.g. 5, 10 or 20 years) of the archive. The model monetary assesses the user’s work, the purchases of storage hardware and other costs of preserving a digital collection. In this paper the first version of the model is presented. It includes a discussion about the cost items and presents the calculation the costs. A case study shows the application of the model for a small business setting