The veraPDF consortium’s objective is to deliver PDF/A validation software accepted and supported by the PDF technology industry.
Developing buy-in
To become the industry-supported file-format validator for any technology, the industry which uses that technology has to buy-in. For veraPDF, this is achieved by way of highly visible, open and transparent processes.
From architecture to functionality to test files, all aspects of veraPDF are subject to the review of and acceptance by the PDF Association’s PDF/A Technical Working Group, including many who participate in the relevant ISO working groups.
Memory institutions, a critical customer population for archival files, are a key constituency, and are represented in the veraPDF by the Open Preservation Foundation and the Digital Preservation Coalition, which survey their members for policies and other input on validator features.
By the middle of 2017, as outlined in the project’s timeline, the veraPDF consortium delivered feature-complete, acceptance-tested validation software. Key features include:
- Free, open-source, purpose-built Implementation Checker validation software for all parts and conformance levels of the PDF/A specification for archival PDF documents.
- Policy Checker software to allow memory institutions and others to implement their collection or other policies with respect to PDF documents.
- Metadata Fixer software to correct metadata in PDF documents based on their conformance with the PDF/A standard.
- A stand-alone cross-platform application for end users, and an API and authoritative set of test files for developers.
veraPDF does not depend on any specific PDF or substructure processing software. The generic design facilitates the use of other PDF parsers and plugins to validate other data-structures as may be encountered within PDF documents, or elsewhere. Likewise, the veraPDF model is extensible to other formats affiliated – or unaffiliated – with PDF.
We expect a vibrant community will develop to help sustain these efforts.
About the veraPDF consortium
Led by the Open Preservation Foundation (OPF) and the PDF Association, and assisted by the Digital Preservation Coalition, the consortium’s mission is to develop industry-supported, open-source validation for PDF/A.
The veraPDF consortium brings together a unique network of stakeholders with complementary perspectives.
- Industry-leading PDF software developers such as Adobe Systems, callas, iText, Nitro, SolidDocuments and many others via the PDF Association’s PDF Validation Technical Working Group;
- Members of the ISO committees that created and maintain the PDF/A and PDF specifications;
- Large and small memory institutions responsible for managing and preserving electronic document archives for governments, educational institutions and commercial organizations.
Contact Us
veraPDF developers
The veraPDF consortium has retained two subcontractors to provide and quality-control software and test files.
Lead developer Dual Lab specializes in technology-intensive application development, while KEEP Solutions focuses on open source solutions for archival institutions.
Leadership
The veraPDF consortium is led by the following individuals:
Left to Right: Boris Dubrov (Dual Labs), Carl Wilson (Open Preservation Foundation), Duff Johnson (PDF Association), and Ed Fay (Open Preservation Foudation).