FOCUS Format Curation Service

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FOCUS Format Curation Service
Joseph JaJa, Muluwork Geremew, Sangchul Song,
Mike McGann, Mike Smorul
Overview Digital file formats encode information
into a form, which can only be accessed and
processed by specific combinations of application
and systems software. Our Goal Development of
an efficient, scalable and platform independent
prototype of a Global Digital Format Registry
(GDFR) to enable the tracking and handling of
format obsolescence.

• FOCUS Service Workflow
• Client contacts FOCUS with a digital object of
  unknown format.
• Identification Service of FOCUS returns the
  format ID.
• Client requests FOCUS available services such as
  validation, rendering, editing or conversion for
  given format ID.
• FOCUS invokes services/applications to perform
  the processes or provides the client with the
  available information on the requested service.

High Level Architecture of FOCUS
Conversion Software

• Past Approaches
• Standardization to a Few Common Formats
• Migration
• Emulation
• Our Approach Implements a GDFR
• Global Digital Format Registry (GDFR) Based on
  an international effort to maintain persistent,
  unambiguous binding between public identifiers
  and the significant syntactic and semantic
  properties of the formats.
• FOCUS Captures all the essential features of
  GDFR, and offers flexible framework for
  incorporating advances of the past approaches.
• Design Philosophy
• Our prototype is based upon open standards and
  mature web technologies.LDAP used to service
  data in FOCUSSOAP provides access to related
  services.

Web Service Agent
Global Digital Format Registry
Format Inquiry
Rendering Software
Client
Validation Software
Identification Module
DIGARCH PROJECT Robust Technologies for
Automated Ingestion and Long-Term Preservation
of Digital Information PI Joseph JaJa