Major Digital Asset Management Systems

Why This Matters

In Digital Art History and Cultural Heritage, you're not just learning software names—you're being tested on how institutions preserve, organize, and provide access to cultural materials in the digital age. These systems represent different philosophical approaches to a core challenge: how do we ensure that digital cultural heritage remains discoverable, usable, and preserved for future generations? Understanding the distinctions between repository architectures, metadata frameworks, and preservation strategies will help you analyze real-world case studies and evaluate institutional decisions.

The systems below demonstrate key concepts you'll encounter throughout this course: open-source vs. proprietary solutions, interoperability standards, long-term digital preservation, and the tension between flexibility and ease of use. Don't just memorize which platform does what—know what problem each system solves and why an institution might choose one approach over another.

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Repository Systems for Research and Scholarship

These platforms prioritize institutional repositories and long-term preservation, typically serving universities and research organizations. They emphasize sustainable access over flashy presentation.

DSpace

• Open-source institutional repository designed for academic and research settings—the most widely adopted platform for university digital collections worldwide
• Self-archiving model allows researchers to deposit their own work, supporting open access initiatives and scholarly communication
• Persistent identifiers (like handles) ensure long-term URL stability, a critical feature for citation and academic reference

Fedora Commons

• Flexible framework rather than turnkey solution—institutions build custom repositories on top of its architecture
• Linked Data support enables semantic web integration, allowing collections to connect with external datasets and vocabularies
• Complex object modeling handles multi-part digital objects (like a manuscript with images, transcriptions, and annotations) as unified items

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Exhibit and Collection Platforms

These systems focus on public presentation and scholarly interpretation, helping institutions create engaging online experiences. They bridge the gap between back-end management and front-end storytelling.

Omeka

• Open-source exhibit builder ideal for digital humanities projects and smaller cultural institutions—emphasizes narrative and interpretation
• Dublin Core metadata baked into the architecture, ensuring collections meet scholarly standards for description and discovery
• Plugin ecosystem allows customization without coding, making it accessible for faculty and students creating class projects

Islandora

• Hybrid architecture combining Drupal (content management) with Fedora (repository)—offers both presentation flexibility and preservation rigor
• Solution packs provide pre-built configurations for common content types like newspapers, oral histories, and image collections
• Scalable infrastructure supports everything from small special collections to massive multi-institutional partnerships

Collective Access

• Museum-focused open-source platform designed for complex cataloging relationships between objects, people, places, and events
• Highly customizable data models allow institutions to define their own fields and relationships rather than conforming to rigid templates
• Providence and Pawtucket components separate back-end cataloging from public-facing discovery, giving institutions control over what's visible

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Archival Management Systems

These platforms address the specific needs of archives and manuscript repositories, where hierarchical arrangement and provenance tracking are essential. They implement archival standards like DACS and EAD.

ArchivesSpace

• Web-based archival management system that has become the de facto standard for archives in North America
• EAD export generates Encoded Archival Description files, enabling interoperability with discovery systems and union catalogs
• Accession-to-access workflow tracks materials from acquisition through processing to public availability

PastPerfect

• Proprietary software designed for smaller museums, historical societies, and archives without dedicated IT staff
• Integrated modules handle collections, archives, library materials, and photo collections in a single system
• Offline capability appeals to institutions with limited internet infrastructure—still widely used despite cloud alternatives

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Library and Media-Focused Systems

These platforms emerged from library workflows and excel at managing diverse media types with robust discovery features. They prioritize end-user access and searchability.

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• OCLC's proprietary platform widely adopted by public and academic libraries for digital collections—integrates with WorldCat discovery
• Compound objects support multi-page documents, allowing users to browse digitized books and manuscripts page by page
• Hosted or local deployment options give institutions flexibility based on their technical capacity and budget

ResourceSpace

• Free, open-source DAM with an emphasis on media management—handles images, video, and audio with strong search capabilities
• Metadata templates streamline cataloging workflows, particularly useful for institutions processing large batches of similar materials
• API access enables integration with websites and other systems, supporting automated workflows and syndication

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Digital Preservation Systems

These platforms prioritize long-term survival of digital assets over immediate access or presentation. They implement preservation standards like OAIS and focus on format migration, fixity checking, and disaster recovery.

Preservica

• Enterprise-grade preservation platform used by national archives, major universities, and corporations with compliance requirements
• Active preservation features automatically migrate files to current formats and verify data integrity over time
• OAIS-compliant architecture follows the Open Archival Information System reference model—a key standard in digital preservation
• Tiered pricing makes basic preservation accessible to smaller institutions while offering advanced features for larger organizations

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Quick Reference Table

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Self-Check Questions

1. Which two systems combine to form Islandora's architecture, and what does each component contribute?

2. An under-resourced local historical society needs to catalog its collection without dedicated IT staff. Compare PastPerfect and Omeka—which would you recommend and why?

3. What distinguishes active digital preservation (like Preservica) from simply storing files in a repository system like DSpace?

4. A university wants to create an online exhibit interpreting a special collection while also ensuring the underlying digital files are preserved for 100+ years. Which combination of systems might they use, and what role would each play?

5. Compare ArchivesSpace and Collective Access: both manage cultural heritage materials, but they implement different professional standards. What types of institutions would choose each, and what metadata frameworks do they support?