Exploring the Durability of PURLs and Their Alternatives (2019 – 2023)
Since GPO has been using PURLs since March 1998, the PURL Working Group was established with investigating, and reporting on, persistent identifier schemas, including PURLs, to ensure GPO’s implementation is robust enough to best serve depository libraries and users of online Federal Government information. The PURL Working Group is further charged with providing recommendations to the DLC for consideration.
This file is Report of the Depository Library Council’s Working Group on Exploring the Durability of PURLs and Their Alternatives, which also contains The transmittal memo to the Depository Library Council Chair Jen Kirk from the Working Group’s Chair Will Stringfellow. The Working Group was charged to investigate persistent identifier schemas, to determine if PURLs are still the best persistent identifier (PID) schema for GPO to provide permanent public access to born digital and digitally imaged Government information. Their report includes Principles for Persistent Identifiers and Persistent Identifier Systems for the Government Publishing Office that they developed, the results of their investigations, and recommendations for Council’s consideration for transmitting to GPO.
This is a recommendation from the Exploring the Durability of PURLs and Their Alternatives to the Depository Library Council, which recommends the Council endorse these Principles for PID and PID systems, and further recommends they be transmitted to the Director of GPO with a recommendation that they be adopted. These Principles aim to guide the determination and implementation of the best available solution for persistent access to Federal Government information in the current digital landscape.