* Apologies for cross-posting *

SCAPE Training: Preserving Your Preservation Tools
(Package Management)
26-27 March 2014
The Hague

Registration is now open for the next SCAPE Project Training event: https://scape-preserving-tools.eventbrite.co.uk.

Overview
Learning to Think Like a Package Maintainer
Lots of great digital preservation applications and services exist, however very few are actively maintained and thus preserved! This is a big problem! By introducing the steps to develop these and engage the support of the community, this training course addresses what can be done to improve this situation. You will learn how to prepare packages for submission into the very heart of many digital environments; the operating system and directly associated “app-stores”. Attendees will be given hands-on experience with developing and maintaining packages rather than software and key differences will be discussed and evaluated. Better preservation of preservation tools, means better preservation our digital history.

Learning Outcomes (by the end of the training event the attendees will be able to):
1. Understand the complexities of package management and distinguish between the different practices relating to both package objectives and chosen programming language. 
2. Be able to carry out advanced package management operations in order to critically appraise current packages and propose changes. 
3. Understand the importance of clearly defined versioning and licenses and the role of clear documentation and examples. 
4. Apply best practice techniques in order to create a simple package suitable for long term maintenance. 
5. Evaluate a number of options for managing package configuration and behaviour relating to package installation, removal, upgrade and re-installation. 
6. Analyse opportunities for automating package management and releases, maintaining a clear focus on the user and not the developer. 
7. Critically evaluate opportunities to generalise package management to allow the easy building and maintenance of packages on multiple platforms.
8. Assess the potential to apply package management techniques in your own environment.

Agenda
The agenda is available here: http://wiki.opf-labs.org/display/SP/Agenda+-+Preserving+Your+Preservation+Tools
The event will be conducted in English.

Who should attend?
Software and tool developers, system administrators
- No digital preservation knowledge required
- Learn how to make your software sustainable so it is easily distributed, installed, and used

Further information
Travel and accommodation advice can be found on the event wiki page: http://wiki.opf-labs.org/display/SP/SCAPE+Training+Event+-+Preserving+Your+Preservation+Tools. Please note there is another major conference taking place in The Hague at the same time - we advise booking accommodation ASAP.

To find out more about the SCAPE Project visit: http://www.scape-project.eu/.

Save the date! SCAPE & OPF Executive Seminar: Managing Digital Preservation, 25 March, The Hague. Registration opening soon.

Kind Regards,
Rebecca McGuinness
SCAPE Project Training Lead