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• 1 2018-06-14T21:12:11-07:00 Resource Formats 7 An overview of the different resource types used in digital projects and best practices for their preservation and access format recommendations plain 2018-06-15T17:59:25-07:00 Different file formats are used for different resource types and for different purposes.  You will not use the same file format for your preservation copy as for your access copy which may also be different from your working files.  

  Formats

  Images

  • Preservation - TIF, 600 dpi
  • Access - JPEG, PNG
  • Working Files - format used by software in image manipulation

  Note: In the event you need to edit an image in a software such as Photoshop, you need to make sure you have access to all of the layers you created.

  Video

  • Preservation - MOV
  • Access - streaming via Vimeo/Youtube
  • Working Files - format used by software in video editing

  Some platforms will not allow you to upload your original audio or video files.  Uploading your content to a video or audio streaming service will allow you to embed the content into your project.  

  Audio

  • Preservation - WAV with a bit depth of 16-24 bits per sample
  • Access - streaming service (eg. Soundcloud)
  • Working Files - format used by software in audio editing

  Documents

  • Preservation - PDF-A (OCRed)
  • Access - PDF
  • Working Files - format used by software to create the document (eg. Word, PowerPoint, Google Docs)

  Datasets

  There are several different file formats used within the communities using and creating datasets so rather than create an exhaustive list, here are some general issues to consider:
  • Preservation - Any format that can be read by more than one software
  • Access - Any format that can be used by non-proprietary software (eg. CSV)
  • Working Files - format used to create the dataset

  Links

  • Preservation - Archive-It, Wayback Machine (Internet Archive), saving page HTML files, annotating in detail the content of the page/project

  Metadata
  It is important to use a structured metadata scheme when describing your items.  You will want to describe each file as robustly as possible using a consistent vocabulary/taxonomy.  Many tools use Dublin Core as the schema for describing items.  

  Resources

  • Library of Congress Recommended Formats Statement
  • The Digital Preservation Handbook (Digital Preservation Coalition)
  • Preservation: Digital File Types (The National Archives - US)