Keywords

format assessment, born digital content, MacOS, compound objects, identification

Abstract

Generally file formats on modern systems are single byte streams, and there are many tools available to help identify and determine what software is needed to make use of the format. When dealing with formats born on Macintosh systems, a single byte stream is often not all that is needed to make use of the formats. On older Macintosh systems a Type/Creator code and a resource fork are often needed, and on more modern systems there are other challenges that need to be addressed. This paper explores some popular formats and tools that are needed to properly assess and capture important metadata in a preservation workflow. The formats explored in this paper use a complex document package to create a file format.