The Standards Dilemma - Digital Library Standards 2008

Joint Information Systems Committee

The Standards DilemmaStrategic Content Alliance – Home Forum

Edinburgh, May 2008

Alastair DunningJISC Digitisation Programme Manager

[email protected] 006 6065


Standards everywhere

Digital content (file formats, metadata) but also software languages, Internet protocols, operating systems

It used to be so simple … create images as Tiffs, text as XML, make sure databases are SQL compliant

It still is that simple - Open standards should be at the heart of policy

But it’s no longer feasible to dictate standards


What have we learnt? (I)

Standards have a context and cannot solely be dictated from top down

– Skills are required to implement and exploit them

• 95% of acronyms are intimidating

• Take time and money to learn standards and related tools

• METS (Metadata Transmission and Encoding Scheme) may be great, but it takes time to learn its ins and outs

• Even ‘basic’ standards can be exploited in novel ways - but sometimes they are too limiting


What have we learnt? (II)

Standards have a context and cannot solely be dictated from top down

– Different users require different standards

• TEI (Text Encoding Initiative) is great for scholars … but for everyone else?

• On the other hand, simple TXT files may lack precision

– Cost of standards fluctuate wildly

• MJPEG2000 creates huge file sizes for moving images

• But other formats are poorer quality

– Open standards not necessarily the most suitable

• WAV, MP3 preferred to OGG by users for sound files


What have we learnt? (III)

Metadata and the creation of digital silos

– Different metadata standards; more importantly different interpretations of metadata

– E.g. basic Dublin Core vs granular VRA4 (Visual Resources Association)

– Crosswalks and translation services exist, but are we fighting a losing battle

– Different thesauri within the same communities?

Developing communities of practice which allow for early agreement and negotiation


What have we learnt? (IV)

Standards may be fixed; but they inhabit an organic environment

– Any standards policy that is implemented interacts with other issues throughout an institution

– E.g. Staff skills and training, costs, times, available software and tools, relationship to hardware and operating systems, required end uses.


Standards must be agile

Not necessarily different external users; same users in slightly different ways

Media and syndication of content

Create once; re-use many times

Migration is not just about digital preservation;

XML to PDF, TXT, XLS, MDB, RSS, HTML

At least use tools which can get you to XML

Letting others use your data in unexpected ways - mash-ups, visualisation


What is JISC doing?

Conversations with experts to provide guidance

UKOLN - wide-reaching concern for standards and metadata

– http://www.ukoln.ac.uk

Netskills workshops

– http://www.netskills.ac.uk/

Cetis - Standards for educational technologies

– http://jisc.cetis.ac.uk/

TASI (Technical Advisory Service for Images)

– Soon to expand remit for sound and moving images - http://www.tasi.ac.uk


What is JISC doing?

JISC Standards Catalogue

– http://standards.jisc.ac.uk/

– Experts from JISC services (and beyond) provide information

– New editions created over time

– Provides entries on key standards, including risk assessment and take-up elsewhere, plus links to further documentation


What is the SCA’s involvement?

Planning for next iteration of standards catalogue

– A catalogue tailored for different audiences

– Providing informed advice on cost, skills required and suitability for respective audiences

– Advocacy campaign to promote use

– Better understanding of audience requirements

– Hence events like today’s

The Standards Dilemma - Digital Library Standards 2008

Education

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