AtoM is open-source software which is available as a free download from the accesstomemory.org website. The software includes a number of Comma Separated Value (CSV) and XML import templates to allow the migration of data from other archival description applications. Often this requires additional formatting of the legacy data to match the AtoM import templates. If this process is too complex or your data too extensive for your organization to do this yourselves, Artefactual Systems can perform the data migration for you.
Artefactual Systems will:
- Consult with you and make recommendations for handling poor quality legacy data or data that do not match cleanly to the data elements in the archival description standards supported by AtoM.
- Develop data migration scripts to transform the client’s legacy datasets to match the AtoM import templates.
- Import any digital objects to be hosted by AtoM, or link any digital objects served by a third-party web service. In either case local reference and thumbnail derivatives for each digital object will be created for display in AtoM.
- Import the migrated data to a test instance of AtoM to be reviewed by the client.
- Update the data migration scripts based on feedback from the client.
- Repeat test imports and review one or two more times until the client is satisfied that latest version of the data is the best representation possible.
- Load the data into one of Artefactual’s hosted AtoM sites or provide the client with the migrated data sets for upload into their own AtoM instance.
Analyzing the legacy data in order to prepare a quote for a data migration can be complex and time-consuming. Because of this, any data migration must be preceded by a Data Migration Analysis Package.
For this package, Artefactual Systems will:
- Receive legacy datasets from the client to evaluate the scope of the data migration.
- Analyze the data to determine how well the legacy data map to AtoM’s standards-based data model.
- Provide a high-level summary of the types of data cleanup and reformatting that will be required to successfully migrate the data into AtoM. This does not include detailed legacy data cleanup and reformatting recommendations, which are provided as part of the data migration project itself.
- Provide a Quote for Services for the proposed data migration project.
If the client accepts the Quote for Services and approves the project within three months, the cost of the Data Migration Analysis Package will be deducted from the cost of the data migration.
Please contact us if you would like to discuss your data migration needs with us.