28-12-2012, 02:58 PM
Digital Library Project (SAFIR)
1Digital Library.pdf (Size: 336.89 KB / Downloads: 115)
Purpose and scope
The purpose of this document is threefold. Firstly it is a high-level reference model for the
University of York digital library, offering both an overarching service framework and a
technical infrastructure. Secondly, it offers a model for the set of functions, processes and
information workflows that the digital library must support. Finally, through this it derives a set
of specific technical, user and functional requirements for building and delivering a digital
library service. The latter will be used as the basis for a software evaluation and
recommendation. As a whole, the document will drive the digital library project and, as such,
it is open to future revisions as changes in our environment demand changes to our services.
Methodology
This document is informed by desk research, discussion and analysis. These methods have
been combined to provide data for the three purposes fulfilled by this document, as identified
above. From a number of previous JISC projects, and other sources, there exists a
considerable amount of documentation around user and other requirements gathering. This
material cannot replace individual discussions with the user community, but it does offer
supplementary data to back-up or refute findings. The intelligence gleaned from the literature
review has been incorporated in the document. Details of literature reviewed can be found in
the Bibliography (Appendix 1).
The second method was to interview representatives from a number of University
Departments. The digital library project has already identified several Departments across
the University with whom it will work closely in the initial three year phase of the project.
Informal interviews with the following Departments have been held: Music, History of Art,
Language & Linguistics, Theatre, Film & Television, Archaeology, Psychology and the
Borthwick Institute for Archives. Details of interviews held can be found in Appendix 2.
Finally, through analysis of both the results of the literature review and the notes taken from
interviews, information about resources types, collections and requirements have been
elicited and used to form the backbone of the ensuing document.
A digital library for the University of York
The digital library Project
The SAFIR project is phase one of the University of York’s digital library project. SAFIR is an
11-month start-up project funded by JISC with the aim of establishing a multimedia repository
at the University. The next phase will take the project to the end of its third year and will give
time to work with more Departments and varied collections. After that the digital library will be
integrated into the Library & Archives core services. It plans to offer vital central storage and
access to digital collections at the University and to act as a central point for funding activities
and digital library technology developments. It will have a pivotal role in stimulating and
supporting future activities and projects in digitization and digital resource creation and
acquisition.
Scope of the digital library
The scope of the digital library, from the outset, has been defined and framed by the existing
needs identified and the existing infrastructure and services available at the University of
York. It is not the aim of the digital library to duplicate any service that exists or is planned or
to deliver functionality that is not its core purpose and can be better served elsewhere.
Integration with other services providing such functionality is an important aspect of the digital
library project.
The need which the digital library is addressing is for a repository, or repositories, to manage,
store and provide access to digital resources which are used as a source for research and
teaching, or arise out of either activity. Digital resources from various disciplines and in a
range of different formats have been identified. Initially, the focus is on resources within the
following Departments of the University: Music, History of Art, Language & Linguistics,
Theatre, Film & Television, Archaeology, Psychology and the Borthwick Institute for Archives,
and covering materials which encompass audio, digitized manuscripts, film, video and
images. Research and teaching at the University of York are closely allied, with each
informing the other, so the boundary between what constitutes research material and what
teaching is not clear.
A model for the digital library
Flexibility is a key consideration in working across Departments and subject disciplines with
different resource requirements. Because of this, the ‘digital library’ is not envisaged as a
single repository or filestore, rather its aim is to offer a technical infrastructure and intellectual
framework within which a range of “services” can be developed, tested and delivered.
Before coming up with a set of functions, practices and information flows, it is useful to look
broadly at the overarching model. It is not the intention of this document to draw time and
energy away from core project goals towards consideration of abstract models and lengthy
standards documents. Having said that, a high-level model is crucial as it provides the
framework and vision for our service.
There is already a well established model in the area – OAIS (Reference Model for an Open
Archival Information System). This has had considerable uptake within the archival
community as its primary focus is on long-term preservation. Planning for the long-term is
something that the York digital library, in fact any digital repository, must do, alongside its
more immediate goals of ingesting material and providing access. By choosing OAIS as a
model for the digital library, it is our intention to draw us closer to a community already
thinking along OAIS-lines and to allow us to better frame our requirements with a set of
(relatively) neutral terminology and concepts. What we must ask ourselves when thinking
about OAIS is whether it constrains or enables us? If treated as guidance rather than
directive, OAIS is very useful as it allows us the flexibility to build a service within its
framework that will support our user requirements and to define a ‘long-term’ that will suit our
needs and community.
Archival Storage
· receive data
· manage storage hierarchy
· replace media
· provide data
· error checking
· disaster recovery
This function must provide the secure storage and back-up required for deposited items, or
formats converted for storage. OAIS does not include functions or sub-functions relating to
tracking the provenance of ingested items, nor does it make explicit connections between
description information [Data Management] and information objects stored by the Archival
Storage function. These functions would be necessary for the digital library, to enable the
recording of audit trails.
Information model
OAIS offers a conceptual model for information which includes the notion of an information
package. There are three types of information package defined: that which is deposited (the
submission information package or SIP), that which is stored (the archival information
package or AIP) and the package(s) delivered to users accessing the service (the
dissemination information package or DIP). Each package should contain the data object(s),
descriptive information and information needed to access and use the resource.
For the digital library, the notion that a deposited package might be converted for storage
and/or dissemination is very important, as is the need for multiple dissemination formats.
There are various use cases which suggest that delivering the most appropriate format for the
user will require the creation of multiple formats derived from an archival ‘master’ resource.