a durable space from april 23 niso virtual conference: dealing with the data deluge
TRANSCRIPT
A Durable SpaceTechnologies for Accessing our Collective Digital Heritage
David Wilcox!Fedora Product Manager!
DuraSpace
A place for my stuff
• What is a repository?!• A repository provides long-term storage and
preservation of digital content!• It also provides long-term access in the form of
persistent URLs
The repository landscape
• Many repository software packages are designed to support institutional repositories!• Examples include: DSpace, EPrints, and Digital
Commons!• These solutions tend to be easy to setup and
manage but offer limited customization
What is Fedora?
• Flexible Extensible Durable Object Repository Architecture!• Fedora is OPEN SOURCE digital repository software!• It is developed, adopted, and supported
internationally!• We’re building Fedora 4!
• The entire codebase has been re-written to support the needs for robust and full-featured repository services for the next decade
Fedora integrates with other applications
• Fedora typically sits between a back-end file system and a front-end user interface!• A wide variety of back-end file systems are
supported!• Popular front-end user interfaces include Hydra
and Islandora
How big is the community?
• There are over 320 Fedora installations (that we know of!)!
• Our community is growing:!• 41 Fedora sponsors!• 19 active developers!• 17 leadership group members!• 10 steering group members
• We are an independent 501(c)(3) non-profit!• We provide leadership and support for:!
• Fedora Commons!• DSpace!• VIVO!
• We also provide software services!!• DuraCloud!• DSpaceDirect
Sources of funding2011
6%
21%
42%
31%
Moore GrantOther GrantsSponsorshipServices
2014
33%
32%
35%
Sponsorship in on the rise!
$0
$125,000
$250,000
$375,000
$500,000
2011 2012 2013 2014
Building toward sustainability
• We’re broadening the funding base!• More sponsors at lower funding amounts!• Raising the overall level of funding!
• We’re hiring!!• Specifically, I was hired as the Product Manager!• Andrew Woods is the Tech Lead!
• We’ve established a governance model!• Fedora is governed by a Leadership group and a
Steering group
How does Fedora support research data?
Model your data however you want
• Research data can take many forms!• Fedora is flexible enough to store and preserve
any file type!
• Your data may also be inter-related in complex ways!• No problem! Fedora provides native RDF
support so you can relate things however you want
Metadata Spreadsheet
Audio Video
Metadata PDF
Metadata PDF
Publication 1 Publication 2
Research Data
Metadata Spreadsheet
Metadata PDF
Metadata PDF
Publication 1 Publication 2
Research Data 1
Metadata Video
Metadata Audio
Research Data 2 Research Data 3
Store and manage large files
• Research data comes in all shapes and sizes!• Huge datasets in spreadsheets!• High resolution images!• High-quality audio/video recordings!
• Fortunately, Fedora supports files of virtually any size
Manage external files
• Your research data may be stored in an external file system!• Fedora can project over these files and treat them
as if they were in the repository!• Fedora’s management and preservation features
will be available to these files
Preserve your data
• Fedora provides a variety of preservation features!• Automated fixity checking (checksums)!• Backup and restore of the entire repository!
• You can also create new versions every time you make a change:!• Across the repository!• Only for certain actions
Research data use cases
Institutional repositories
• Repository managers need to upload publications and associated research datasets!• Publications and research data files can uploaded
with associated metadata!• Each file can be associated with any number of
other files in the repository
Managing publications
Associating research data
Smithsonian Institute
• SIdora is designed to support the research process from beginning to end!• Researchers upload files to the repository and use
it directly in their analysis!• The entire research process is documented and
preserved alongside the finished publication
Managing concepts
Adding resources
Editing metadata
Uploading datasets
Useful links
• Fedora 4 wiki!• https://wiki.duraspace.org/display/FF!
• Fedora community mailing list!• https://groups.google.com/forum/#!forum/fedora-
community!
• Fedora developers mailing list!• https://groups.google.com/forum/#!forum/fedora-
tech
Questions?