LDaCA Software Tools


A variety of LDaCA open-source tools are available at our GitHub organisation. Highlights include:


Metadata Editor

Crate-O: A tool that allows you to create and update Research Object Crates (RO-Crates) using a web interface, and with metadata spreadsheets. It provides researchers with a relatively simple way to describe their data using the best practices in formal metadata description.

For more information about Crate-O and how to create RO-Crates with the interface, see the Crate-O User Guide.


Data Storage

OCFL-js, a library that implements the Oxford Common File Layout (OCFL): A specification for laying out digital collections on file or object storage. It is designed with long-term preservation principles in mind and does not rely on specialised software. Amongst the benefits of using OCFL with RO-Crate objects are:

  • completeness: a repository can be re-indexed from the files it stores
  • versioning: repositories can make changes to objects and still allow their history to persist

Data Portal and Access API

Oni: A web application that provides indexing, searching and access to secure data repositories following the Arkisto model. This is used to build the LDaCA Portal: The online interface of the Language Data Commons of Australia where users can discover and access language collections.