Links that Last

19/07/2012 at Woodlegh Room, Strathaird Building, Lucy Cavendish

Widely-distributed, highly-volatile and tightly-integrated data streams create a particular challenge for preservation. One could be forgiven for thinking that digital preservation was principally concerned with safeguarding of self-contained packets of information that may have interdependencies but which are so carefully tucked into stand-alone files that they have a sort of independence and autonomy which ensures their integrity. This has never been the case. Nonetheless recent developments in data presentation have shown the potential that can be gained from liberating data from clumsy format wrappers and enabling retrieval and integration of individual data points. The emerging 'Linked Data' approach enables new types of interaction with and between structured data and it challenges existing paradigms of data sharing. It also challenges us to think about preservation in new ways: it creates the potential for long chains of interdependencies and it means we need to think all the more carefully about provenance and authenticity. The question arises as to whether Linked Data will simply deliver a new generation of broken links – stifling the innovation it promises and creating the conditions for new and avoidable forms of disenfranchisement.

Simultaneously, the digital preservation community has put considerable effort into the development of persistent identifiers, services that seek to ensure that essential links are not lost and that the highly distributed contexts in which information is presented are protected against the vagaries of time and obsolescence.

This briefing day will introduce the topics of persistent identifiers and linked data, discussing the practical implications of both approaches to digital preservation. It will consider the viability of services that offer persistent identifiers and what these offer in the context of preservation; it will review recent developments in linked data, considering how such data sets might be preserved; and by introducing these two parallel topics it will go on to consider whether both approaches can feasibly be linked to create a new class of robust linked data. Based on commentary and case studies from leaders in the field, participants will be encouraged to consider practical implications for their own work and new directions for research and development in the field.

The day will include discussion of key topics such as:

• Practical experiences in persistent identifiers
• What is linked data and why it matters
• How might linked data be preserved
• Emerging trends in persistent identifiers
• Metadata and linking

Who should come?

• Collections managers, curators and archivists in all institutions
• Data scientists interested in presenting, accessing and safeguarding linked data
• Tools developers and policy makers in digital preservation and data science
• Innovators, researchers and investors in information management
• Innovators, researchers and funders in computing science and digital preservation
• Vendors and providers of digital preservation and continuity of business services

 

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Where and when?

Woodlegh Room, Lucy Cavendish College, Lady Margaret Road, Cambridge CB3 OBJ

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Registration and Payment

Places are FREE to paid up DPC members and guests. Registration should be completed before 13th July Friday 2012. For details on how to become a DPC member see here.

For non-members registration costs of £250.00 (VAT exempt) per person. Please note payment terms described below: Full payment to be received in full before the event (by the 13th July 2012).There will be a £50.00 no show/cancellation fee if you do not notify us within one full week of the event date.

You will receive an automated confirmation on the webpage upon completion of registration. Five days before the event you will recieve a 'joining' email from the DPC Business Manager Carol Jackson that will outline practical details of the day.

The DPC does not issue invoices for event booking and cannot process card payments. Events are free for our members who also have priority registration. So you can avoid paying by joining the DPC.

1. Preferred method of payment is by BACS electronic transfer to; Digital Preservation, details of account numbers are available on request by phoning 01904 435362 Please reference the transfer with "Yoursurname_DPC event" otherwise we will be unable to trace and confirm your payment and place. Payment must be arranged at least one week before the event.
2. A cheque written out to Digital Preservation Coalition'. Please post to DPC, Innovation Centre, Science Park, Heslington, York YO10 5DG.

3. For payment in CASH on the day - please tell us that you wish to pay on the day with written email written confirmation to carol_AT_dpconline.org

The registration is not available for this event

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Provisional Programme (details subject to change)

 

1030 Registration and Coffee

1100 Welcome and introductions (William Kilbride, DPC)
1105 Persistent Identifiers and Digital Preservation (Elinor Robinson, London School of Economics) [PDF 769KB]
1135 Linked data case study (Alan Danskin, British Library) [PDF 3352KB]
1205 Case study: the DataCite service (Elizabeth Newbold, DataCite)[PDF 439KB]
1235 Q+A

1245 Lunch

1345 Pragmatic Linked Data (Chris Gutteridge, Southampton University) [PDF 1156KB]
1415 Emerging trends and new research in persistent identifiers (Maurizio Lunghi, Fondazione Rinascimento Digitale) [PDF 2262KB]
1445 Linked data and preservation metadata: emerging work at the BNF (Sébastien Peyrard, Bibliothèque nationale de France)[pdf 975KB]

1515 Coffee

1545 Panel discussion: persistend identifiers, linked data and digital preservation (Chair TBC)
1645 Wrap up and thanks (William Kilbride DPC)

By 1700 Close

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Amplification

If you are not able to attend then you can follow the event using the #dpc_links hashtag, An open notepad will be available throughout the event and a short summary report will be available shortly afterwards