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Another option is to use a PRONOM Persistent Unique Identifier. PUIDs can be expressed as URIs in the form info:pronom/fmt/nnn. The major benefit is you can distinguish between versions of format types (eg info:pronom/fmt/11 is PNG 1.0, info:pronom/fmt/12 is PNG 1.1 and info:pronom/13 is PNG 1.2). Another examples is application/postscript doesn't distinguish between PS 1.0, EPS 3.0 or anything in between.
IANA IMTs don't necessarily provide sufficient information for a software agent to determine whether a resource is useful. Using the Unified Digital Format Registry (UDFR) would be logical when it is up and running. It will be based on the PRONOM system and database.
Regards
David
David Bromage
Policy and Strategic Projects
Government Information Management Branch
National Archives of Australia
PO Box 7425
Canberra Business Centre ACT 2610
T (02) 6212 3731 F (02) 6212 3989 M 0418 394 778 [log in to unmask] www.naa.gov.au
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