60 DCC DIFFUSE Standards Frameworks
The International Journal of Digital Curation
Issue 2, Volume 4 | 2009
DCC DIFFUSE Standards Frameworks:
A Standards Path through the Curation Lifecycle
Sarah Higgins,
Standards Advisor,
Digital Curation Centre
Abstract
The DCC DIFFUSE Standards Frameworks Project aims to offer domain-specific advice on
standards relevant to digital preservation and curation, to help curators identify which standards
they should be using and where they can be appropriately implemented, to ensure authoritative
digital material. The Project uses the DCC Curation Lifecycle Model and Web 2.0 technology, to
present standards frameworks visually for a number of disciplines. The Digital Curation Centre
(DCC) has worked with different organisations to present searchable frameworks of standards, for a
number of domains. They include digital repositories, records management and the archives sector1.
1 This paper is based on the paper given by the author at the 4th International Digital Curation
Conference, December 2008; received July 2008, published October 2009.
The International Journal of Digital Curation is an international journal committed to scholarly excellence and
dedicated to the advancement of digital curation across a wide range of sectors. ISSN: 1746-8256 The IJDC is
published by UKOLN at the University of Bath and is a publication of the Digital Curation Centre.

DCC DIFFUSE Standards Frameworks 61
Introduction
Effective long-term curation and preservation of digital information relies on the
implementation of appropriate standards and technologies which support curation
processes over the entire lifecycle of digital material. With hundreds of standards, in
multiple versions to choose from, selecting those suitable for curation and preservation
actions can be a daunting task.
The DCC DIFFUSE Standards Frameworks2Project offers domain-specific advice
on relevant standards. The DCC Curation Lifecycle Model (Higgins, 2008) is used to
contextualise standards and visually present searchable frameworks. This helps digital
curators identify which standards they should be using, and where they can be
appropriately implemented. The use of Web 2.0 technology encourages community
engagement and ensures information regarding standards usage is maintained.
Meanwhile the Project is actively working with organisations from different
disciplines to identify and develop appropriate frameworks.
Standards in Digital Curation
Information technology standards facilitate the implementation of solutions for
creating and storing digital material, as well as supporting their subsequent access, use
and reuse. Many standards are generic, and offer functionality which can be used
across different disciplines, to support curation. They include file formats, reference
models such as OAIS3, persistent identifier standards and standards designed to
support remote access, deposit and authentication. Other standards are discipline
specific, and have been developed for a particular purpose which is not widely
applicable. In particular, metadata standards, authority files and XML-compliant mark-
up languages are often very specific to the material being described, and represent the
result of intra-disciplinary collaborations. Examples of them are widespread and
include: the metadata structure standard ISAD(G) (General International Standard
Archival Description)4 designed for describing archives, which can be marked up in
EAD (Encoded Archival Description)5; and mark-up languages such as Chemical
Markup Language6 and MathML7.
Implementors combine both types of standard, to develop frameworks which can
be used to manage their digital information effectively. These frameworks can also be
the result of disciplinary collaborations, with domains sharing the problem of
identifying sets of standards which can achieve a community aim.
Implementing standards frameworks can have multiple benefits to a community,
including: encouraging the achievement of community objectives through consistent
and increased participation; sharing of resources, procedures, architectures, metadata
profiles and access terminologies; and interoperability of hardware, software and data.
2 Digital Curation Centre: DCC DIFFUSE Standards Frameworks http://www.dcc.ac.uk/diffuse/
3 ISO 14721:2003 Space data and information transfer systems — Open archival information system —
Reference model
4 ISAD(G): General International Standard Archival Description, Second edition
http://www.ica.org/en/node/30000
5 Encoded Archival Description Version 2002 Official Site http://www.loc.gov/ead/
6 cml.sourceforge.net - OpenSource Site for CML http://cml.sourceforge.net/
7 W3C Math Home http://www.w3.org/Math/
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62 Sarah Higgins
Developing and sharing effective standards frameworks can increase business
effectiveness through efficiency savings, and ensuring legislative compliance. At the
same time the implementation of sustainable and viable systems, with effective
workflows, can be undertaken with reduced organisational design work. For some
disciplines frameworks are de facto, relying on community agreement for their
application, for example the Joint Information Systems Committee (JISC) Standards
Catalogue8, which details recommended standards for the projects they fund. Other
frameworks, such as the UK Government’s e-Government Interoperability Framework
(eGIF)9 are mandated to ensure interoperability across a sector.
The benefits of standards frameworks to ensure consistency of approach, and
consequent interoperability and collaboration, have been explored by the UKOLN
Interoperability Focus10. Interoperability with the cultural and heritage sector is
discussed by Gill and Miller (2002) and reports from orchestrated meetings with the
sector noted a willingness to collaborate on defining standards frameworks (Miller,
Dawson & Perkins, 2001). The benefits of open standards to the digital libraries
community, to avoid vendor lock-in, and effective collaborative implementations have
also been examined (Dunning et al, 2005).
Standards Frameworks and the Curation Lifecycle
The continuity of digital material is best assured by a lifecycle approach to their
management. The benefits of this approach to archiving digital objects was discussed
by Hodge (2000), and to the curation of digital information by Pennock (2007). The
DCC is committed to promoting the lifecycle management of digital assets, and has
developed the DCC Curation Lifecycle Model (Figure 1) to facilitate planning. This
lifecycle approach to curation needs to be underpinned by the implementation of
appropriate standards and technologies. The Model can facilitate the planning of
frameworks, which ensure support for all parts of the lifecycle.
Standards frameworks intended to support the curation lifecycle should ensure
that the recommended technologies maintain the authority of digital material, as
defined by ISO 15489 (International Organization for Standardization, [ISO], 2001a,
2001b). Authenticity (i.e., where the material is what it puports to be) is maintained
through: access controls; appropriate metadata; consistent use of persistent identifiers;
and bitstream calculations such as checksums to ensure data have not been corrupted
or tampered with. Reliability (i.e., where the contents can be trusted) is ensured
through the maintenance of complete, organised and accessible material. Integrity (i.e.,
where the material is complete and unaltered) relies on protection by authority control.
Usability (i.e., where the material can be located, retrieved, presented and interpreted)
is maintained through: the implementation of systems appropriate to the business aim;
inclusion of a comprehensive range of material for contextual understanding; and
systematic management of material throughout the lifecycle. Additionally, standards
frameworks for curation will ideally support interoperability, maximise accessibility,
avoid vendor lock-in, provide architectural integrity, and help to ensure long-term
preservation.
8 JISC Standards Catalogue http://standards.jisc.ac.uk/catalogue/Home.phtml
9 GovTalk – e-GIF http://www.govtalk.gov.uk/schemasstandards/egif.asp
10 UKOLN Interoperability Focus http://www.ukoln.ac.uk/interop-focus/
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DCC DIFFUSE Standards Frameworks 63
DCC DIFFUSE Standards Frameworks
In some domains, the benefits of standards are well understood, and
comprehensive frameworks have been developed, documented and made accessible for
potential adoptors. DCC DIFFUSE Standards Frameworks has started to capture these
frameworks to make them further accessible. The Project graphically explains the way
in which the standards included in a framework can be concurrently implemented to
achieve curation aims. At the same time the Project can act as a depository for
organisations, consortiums and projects, enabling them to document the frameworks
they have developed in a consistent manner, manage them in one location and
advertise them to others seeking curation solutions.
The resource consists of a browsable database of standards relevant to digital
curation and preservation. Users can opt to browse by choosing a relevant Framework.
The DCC Curation Lifecycle Model then offers a graphical searching tool, indicating
the appropriate stage for implementation of the standards documented within the
Framework. These contextualisations will help users to identify readily which of the
many standards included in the database are appropriate to their own situation. They
can identify which are designed to support the curation actions they wish to plan,
aiding informed choices regarding implementation. It also enables users to identify
gaps in the curation planning process as well as areas where additional standards need
to be considered, or even developed. The database also offers a number of other
browsing options: by title; by the technical function they support; and the organisation
responsible for their development.
Information regarding individual standards is being formulated using a profile of
the Standards Metadata Element Set, v3.011, which was specifically developed for
documenting standards by the ANSI-hosted Standards Registry Committee12. All
standards are classified according to the frameworks in which they are included, the
lifecycle function they support and their technical function. Users are able to identify:
previous versions of a standard; those standards which are referenced within a standard
and need to be used in conjunction with it; and those which have been created by the
same body. Descriptions link to: standards documentation; information concerning
sponsoring bodies; and further useful documentation concerning a standard such as
implementation guidelines, XML schema or best practice guidelines.
The English language version of the Website Wikipedia13 is being used to manage
standards descriptions and encourage community participation. Early test descriptions
created for the Project showed that this was the first resource consulted when
researching data for the fields documenting both functions and usage of standards –
particularly as the actual standards documentation is not always readily available. This,
and the enormous task of keeping the descriptive information up to date with limited
staffing and budget, led to the decision to encourage the community to undertake the
maintanence of this information. The possibility of a custom-built DCC DIFFUSE
wiki for this purpose was considered, but it was decided that this was unlikely to
achieve the community buy-in possible with the high-profile and apparently stable
11 Standards Metadata Element Set, v3.0 http://publicaa.ansi.org/sites/apdl/Documents/Other
%20Services/Standards%20Registry%20Committee/Standards%20Reg%20Metadata%20Def
%20v3.0.pdf
12This Committee reported in March 2003 – minutes and the metadata set can be found at:
http://www.ansi.org/internet_resources/standards_registry_committee/stdsreg.aspx?menuid=12
13 Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Main_Page
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64 Sarah Higgins
Wikipedia. DCC DIFFUSE encourages users, and collaborators to create Wikipedia
entries where none currently exist, to keep a weather eye on existing descriptions, and
make occasional corrections and updates. The feasibility of linking to a particular
“DCC-endorsed” version of a Wikipedia entry, and the possibility of formatting the
standards pages for future harvesting into the DCC resource within Wikipedia, was
examined.
Figure 1. The graphical component of the DCC Curation Lifecycle Model (Higgins,
2008).
Contributions to DCC DIFFUSE Standards Frameworks
The Project has completed the documentation of the framework for the Records
Management community identified by MoReq2 (Serco Consulting, 2008), and is
currently working with both the digital repositories community and the archives
community to capture the frameworks identified by the Driver Project (Foulonneau &
Francis, 2007) and the UK Society of Archivists Data Standards Group respectively.
The latter have been developing a framework, which is currently the focus of a series
of articles in their member’s newsletter, Arc. This framework has been developed, in
conjunction with the DCC, for presentation in DCC DIFFUSE. It is hoped that it will
also be accessible from the Society of Archivists website14. It is planned that these two
frameworks will be completely documented by the end of February 2010.
14 Society of Archivists http://www.archives.org.uk/
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DCC DIFFUSE Standards Frameworks 65
Collaborative work with the Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC)15 has currently been
suspended due to pending funding changes across the DCC. The OGC intended to
undertake data entry for the Project for the standards it develops and recommends.
ensuring maximum exposure to relevant adopters. It is hoped this work will continue
in the near future. A number of other communities have shown an interest in
depositing their Standards Frameworks with DCC DIFFUSE. They include
representatives of the web archiving, the museums, the particle physics and the
eScience communities.
Possible Further Growth
Initially the DCC approached organisations asking them to participate in DCC
DIFFUSE. Latterly the situation has become reversed with increased demand for
participation in building the resource, and its use as an information source.
Unfortunately future funding for developing the activity within the DCC has been
significantly reduced, and so further development will depend on increased community
participation to build a collaborative repository owned by the community. This can be
undertaken using the approaches reported here.
Origins of DCC DIFFUSE Standards Frameworks
The Diffuse Project (Dissemination of InFormal and Formal Useful Specifications
and Experiences to Research, Technology Development and Demonstration
Communities) was originally funded under the European Commission’s Information
Society Technologies (IST) 5th Framework Programme and ran from 1 February 2000
until 31 January 2003. When funding terminated for this project, the data created by its
partners16 were retained online as a valuable information resource17. Unfortunately no
funding was available to maintain the resource and in the rapid moving world of
information technology it became outdated. In 2005, the DCC secured permission to
re-purpose the content and has redeveloped the concept into the browsable database
described above.
The redeveloped DCC DIFFUSE offers the contextualisation of the standards
included, by both the specific domains, which find them useful and the lifecycle action
that they support. It shows how particular sectors use standards, both domain-specific
and generic standards together, to achieve their curation aims, and maintain the
authority of their digital material. This should provide users a greater understanding of
the applicability of standards to their own situation, and offer a more informed choice
regarding which to implement. Additionally the harnessing of Wikipedia’s volunteers
should ensure that the resource does not become so badly outdated if it is not actively
maintained for a period.
15 The Open Geospatial Consortium, Inc.® (OGC) http://www.opengeospatial.org/
16 Partners were: TIEKE (Finnish Information Society Development Centre) http://www.tieke.fi/in_english/
IC Focus and the SGML Centre (now IS-Thought) http://www.is-thought.co.uk/
17Originally developed in XML, HTML snapshots from the Diffuse Project were retained online by IS-
Thought until early 2009.
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66 Sarah Higgins
Conclusions
The DCC has further extended the concept of the original Diffuse Project to create
a newly dynamic resource which enables domain-specific standards frameworks,
which will support the lifecycle management of authoritative records.
Contextualisation, using the DCC Curation Lifecycle Model enables users to identify
appropriate standards and the suitable lifecycle stages for their implementation,
facilitating detailed curation planning and the realisation of curation activities.
Acknowledgements
I would like to thank not only members of the DCC Staff but also the various
experts who submitted contributions to the development of the DCC Curation
Lifecycle Model. Additional thanks go to Chris Blackall for suggestions in respect of
lifecycle graphics (and advice on the use of Wikipedia) and Sue Fairhurst of the
University of Bath who realised them from my rough sketches.
References
Dunning, A., Hollins, P., Johnston, P., Kelly, B., Phipps, L., & Russell, R. (2005).
Standards framework for digital library programmes. International Conference
on Hypermedia and Interactivity in Museums, 2005, Paris, France. Retrieved
July 25, 2008 from http://www.ukoln.ac.uk/web-focus/papers/ichim05/html/
Foulonneau, M., & Francis, A. (2007). Investigative study of standards for digital
repositories and related services. Amsterdam University Press: Netherlands.
Gill, T., & Miller, P. (2002, January). Re-inventing the wheel? Standards,
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July 25, 2008, from http://www.dlib.org/dlib/january02/gill/01gill.html#11
Higgins, S. (2008, July). The DCC curation lifecycle model. International Journal of
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Hodge, G.M. (2000, January). Best practices for archiving: An information life cycle
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International Organization for Standardization. (2001b). ISO 15489-1(2001)
Information and documentation -- Records management -- Part 2: Guidelines.
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DCC DIFFUSE Standards Frameworks 67
Miller, P., Dawson, D., & Perkins, J. (2001, October). Standing on the shoulders of
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