fddXMLreadme.txt

This readme file is ZIP-packaged with the full set of XML versions of FDDs (Format Description Documents), downloadable from this location: http://www.loc.gov/preservation/digital/formats/fddXML.zip. 

The fddXML directory holds the individual XML versions of FDDs. These XML FDDs may accessed individually if the identifier is known, using the following path- and file-name pattern: http://www.loc.gov/preservation/digital/formats/fddXML/fddnnnnnn.xml. Here's an example.  The HTML version of the main PDF description is here: http://www.loc.gov/preservation/digital/formats/fdd/fdd000030.shtml. The corresponding XML version is here: http://www.loc.gov/preservation/digital/formats/fddXML/fdd000030.xml.  

The format description documents comply with a primary XML Schema Definition (.xsd file), which refers to a subsidiary schema using an xsd:include declaration. The subsidiary schema handles HTML styling within the longer text fields in FDDs.

Current version:
Version 1.1, November 11, 2016. 
-- Primary: http://www.loc.gov/preservation/digital/formats/schemas/fdd/v1/fdd-v1-1.xsd
-- Subsidiary: http://www.loc.gov/preservation/digital/formats/schemas/fdd/v1/htmlTypes.xsd


Previous version of the schema is also available:
Version 1.0, July 20, 2012. 
-- Primary: http://www.loc.gov/preservation/digital/formats/schemas/fdd/v1/fdd-v1-0.xsd
-- Subsidiary: http://www.loc.gov/preservation/digital/formats/schemas/fdd/v1/htmlTypes.xsd

Note that the current primary schema is also available at: 
-- http://www.loc.gov/preservation/digital/formats/schemas/fdd/v1/fdd-v1.xsd

The HTML versions of the FDDs on the Library of Congress Web site carry this comment:  <!--This FDD was generated based on an XML master of the FDD schema and using an XSLT transformation.-->

Background note:  These digital format descriptions were compiled for the Web site "Sustainability of Digital Formats" (http://www.digitalpreservation.gov/formats/), originally under the auspices of the Library of Congress National Digital Information Infrastructure and Preservation Program (NDIIPP; http://www.digitalpreservation.gov/) and most recently under the Digital Collections and Management Services division in the Technology Policy Directorate.

In March 2017, the Sustainability of Digital Formats website moved from http://www.digitalpreservation.gov/formats/ to http://www.loc.gov/preservation/digital/formats/.

This readme file was written in March 2017.
