A framework for describing web repositories

In prior work we have demonstrated that search engine caches and archiving projects like the Internet Archive’s Wayback Machine can be used to “lazily preserve” websites and reconstruct them when they are lost. We use the term “web repositories” for collections of automatically refreshed and migrated content, and collectively we refer to these repositories as the “web infrastructure”. In this paper we present a framework for describing web repositories and the status esources in them. This includes an abstract API for web repository interaction, the concepts of deep vs. flat and light/dark/grey repositories and terminology for describing the recoverability of a web resource. Our API may serve as a foundation for future web repository interfaces. Categories and Subject Descriptors H.3.7 [Information Storage and Retrieval]: [Digital Libraries] General Terms Standardization, Design Keywords Preservation, Web Repositories, Web Resources

• Type: Conference
• Year: 2009
• Where: JCDL
• Authors: Frank McCown, Michael L. Nelson
• Keywords: Education, Internet Archive Wayback Machine, JCDL 2009, Web Repositories, Web Repository