AMIA Pathways Fellowship - Introduction to Digital Preservation

June 26, 2026 + July 10, 2026

Week 1: DigiPres Introduction + Obsolete File Preservation Exercise

Week 1 Topics \\ Digital Preservation Introduction

  1. Analog and Digital Signals

  2. Obsolete File Preservation Exercise

  3. Introduction to Digital Preservation Standards

Week 1 Resources \\

  1. Infinite Mac Emulator
    https://infinitemac.org/

  2. Hex Editor Webapp
    https://hexed.it/

Week 2: File Analysis & Preservation Packaging

Week 2 Topics \\ File Analysis + Packaging

  1. File Analysis using HexEditor, MediaInfo and Exiftool

  2. Data Structuring and the OAIS Model

Week 2 Resources \\

Exiftool Info - Phil Harvey
http://exiftool.org/

MediaInfo Info
https://mediaarea.net/en/MediaInfo

Gary Kessler’s List of File Signatures
https://www.garykessler.net/library/file_sigs_GCK_latest.html

Apple ProRes White Paper
https://www.apple.com/final-cut-pro/docs/Apple_ProRes.pdf

 
Download Test Files

Actual bug found by Grace Hopper

Julia Evans: Debugging
https://jvns.ca/blog/2022/12/08/a-debugging-manifesto/

“When you run into a bug, the natural instinct is to try to fix it as fast as possible…

But in my day to day debugging, I find that it’s generally more effective (and faster!) to leave the bug in place, figure out exactly what’s gone wrong, and then fix it after I’ve understood what happened.”