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Welcome to the DavitTec FileIT wiki!
The purpose of this project was to create a system structure for the single or multi-user or electronic filing system for all kinds of data that needs appropriate list, read, write, delete access, searched, archived, categorized, and retrieved. We were inspired to start this upon discovering datacurator-filetree by roboyoshi and TomFrankly
The objective is to increase the efficiency of the filing and searching, reduce duplicates, increase ownership and versioning system.
To be methodological for USER and System's hierarchical activity.
However, many existing system flavors; including Apple, Android, Google, Microsoft, etc., and the varied Unix and Linux, mono or mixed, provide similar Default folders for the USER.
But un-administered systems tend to follow the default FOLDER structures and usually get cluttered, while the administered usually follow a customized structure to suit system architectures and the Admin protocols. While assuming every user follows protocols.
Other issues to consider are to create flexibility for different cultures and languages in the mix. This can be a document/FONT level to the overall menu and editing structures.
HERE, we present one option that may be useful for both single or multi-user/corporate.
We have considered a few real case examples, please read Case Studies for further information.
Can we develop a filing system protocol that is semi-automatic and transparent?
Ideally, in a multi-user environment,
- duplication should be reduced
- digital asset (file/folder) may include originality and validation with other metadata
- access for the list, read, write or delete be flagged under protocol
- folder system levels should not be too deep, stay with 5 levels if possible
- each folder should limit sub-folders/categories to a max of 20 or not more than 40
- the first option is to search for an object, instead of browsing through folders
- old objects, >1 year, should be archived into annual Archives and indexed for easy retrieval or access.
- objects can also include emails and to be converted to basic Text and attachments archived out.
Base design
There would be no point in setting our goals if we did not consider how we got here and why there is a need for this project and solution.
In the past, a scholar, shopkeeper, salesman, or librarian developed a system to keep track of correspondence, articles, books, contacts, customers, tax-collector, and collections of tangible documents, such as deeds, receipts, money, bills, invoices, and drafts, etc. There was a time to organize a tangible recording and filing system. Then bookkeeping and accounting became standardized. All lead to various tangible filing and recording systems in the "office" or "home".
With the advance of the computer and information technology age, many old systems adopted the old common methods, including the "desktop", which contained our daily systems of bygone times. These included the dairy, home folders with foolscap headings, business-card holder, and the index card system, linking to a Filing cabinet, shelf or storage, or stock room.
However, in the past, tangible space was abundant and digital space was premium. Taking this into account, each digital character was costly in terms of digital space. For example, many systems abbreviated folder and file naming structures to 3 letters and files limited to single lowercase character set 8-dot-3 limitations. Hence we have "doc" for documents, "lib" for libraries, and "usr" for users, etc.
Nowadays, we have tangible space at a premium cost and digital space abundance or seemingly limitless and cost less. This brought on the effect of effortless digital storage, backups, duplication, and mutations of the same digital objects in a clustered world, both in the home domain and also within the internet global domain. Finding originality has somewhat been obscured by the mass storage domains and systems. This brings validation and honesty into question in all things digital.
A single common file, duplicated between an honest and a dishonest broker can break or contaminate your system if you picked the wrong source file. This phenomenon has brought an extensive middle-ware service of antivirus checking and or fraudulent hacks to populate your time with inappropriate abusive adware and distractions. These distractions impose destructive behavioral psychometric analytic algorithms based on your own data and online activity. The object is to distract, influence, and seduce your action that results in some form of monetization with or without your knowledge.
Beware that FREE online service really means YOU sign up to be the digital object for their profit. You are the Product.
So we wish to at least develop a clean home office filing systems that do not allow time-wasting actions or distracting activities. Above all, each digital object should be validated and versioned, and easy to reach by the user (requester). Each digital object should have a single source and original owner(author) which is replicated for persistence, preservation, and authenticity.
Ideally, we should always develop a unique digital signature to attach to all digital objects and be traceable and or anonymously applied if desired.
But in some cases, a digital object may flag a DELETE in the future. This begs the question of the dependencies and successors of digital objects. Can a SEED exist without a parent?
Since, our work in the olden days of IT, back in the 1970s, we have envisioned a method of unique location identifier be applied to a transport layer and also a unique timestamp. Neither has been formally adopted into the IP protocols. If both Location/timestamps are not implemented in the transport layer, then this can be applied at Message, document, or file levels. To be discussed further as these methods help to offer validation and originality.
A unique time and location stamp should not be invented or created by you but uniquely applied via real-time location situations. This can only be developed via a common solar clock. [a consideration being researched by DAVit]
The main function of any filing system is not to introduce duplication and or concurrent modifications which would introduce redundancy and or inconsistent structures, folders, files, or documents. The same file or document located in two places can produce different results. The document separation can come about where collaboration on the same document is separated by an intermediate transports function, using email or file share. A new public online system like Dropbox, Google and more, proposes a sharing scheme that only harvests the digital object and offers digital links to that object. Hence, these public (but apparently proprietary) systems take ownership of the uploaded digital asset, and you as the original author are deputized as one temporary custodian of it. This really should be the other way around. The Author should have complete absolute control to erase totally any digital copies, history, and any metadata associated with that original digital object.
For this project, we assume you control the whole system and there is NO open architecture, excluding links to open domain and or intranets.
However, Cloud-based system storage is an open question as to who owns what and we are opening the discussion here.
todo