Introducing the iPRES Tools Demo Session: The Digital Preservation "Bake Off"

The iPRES Digital Preservation Bake Off is an annual tools demonstration. Despite the wooden spoons and aprons, no actual baking takes place at this event... Photo credit: Michiel Devijver, iPRES 2024, CC BY-SA 4.0

The Digital Preservation Bake Off is a dynamic event held during the International Conference on Digital Preservation (iPRES). It offers a platform for developers and practitioners to showcase their digital preservation solutions in a live, interactive setting and decorated with delicious baking puns. Participants demonstrate how their tools address real-world challenges in digital preservation, such as metadata extraction, scalability, and integration with existing systems. First introduced as a showcase in 2014 and formally baked into the program as the Digital Preservation Bake Off in 2019 in Amsterdam, this distinctive event has quickly become a conference highlight. It offers both seasoned and emerging tool developers the opportunity to serve up and demonstrate the value and effectiveness of their digital preservation tools in a short, timed presentation. At iPRES 2024, the Bake Off featured 21 diverse digital preservation tools. This year, the Bake Off features two tracks: the Amuse Bouche challenge for practitioners and the Tasting Spoon challenge for service providers. A unique aspect of the Bake Off is the use of the ‘iPRES Pantry,’ a curated set of test files and datasets supplied by the community. This resource enables participants to demonstrate their solutions' effectiveness on common preservation issues. Currently, our pantry features a wide range of tasty ingredients, including 3D Data, Geodata, email, web content, disk images, PDFs of all flavours, databases, AV materials, Mac and Microsoft Office formats, Google Drive files, and – for the discerning chefs – some exotic ingredients. Whether you're a developer at a large institution or a solo innovator, this is your chance to get cooking and receive immediate, unfiltered feedback from both peers and potential users in a supportive and enthusiastic environment.

Bake Off Commitee member, Nathan Tallman, offers a guide to the iPRES Digital Preservation Bake Off.

Recipe for a great Bake Off experience

Ingredients:

• A selection of bold and creative digital preservation minds

• A handful of passionate developers and preservation chefs

• A pinch of friendly competition

• A dash of live demonstration

• A curious, hungry audience
  

Method:

1. Preheat the conference space to a high energy.

2. Invite developers to whip up their best preservation solutions.

3. Stir in some real-world scenarios to test flavour, texture, and reliability.

4. Fold in audience interaction and a whisk-taking spontaneous Q&A.

5. Garnish with discussion, feedback, and maybe a few unexpected twists.

6. Serve live, hot, and full of drive.

Contestants use a ‘pantry’ of test files to showcase their applications in real-time, and demonstrate their solutions on common preservation issues. Organised into ‘tasting menus,’ the event offers a playful yet insightful look into the future of digital preservation, making it a fun and educational experience for all.

We are looking for tools, new platforms and services, bespoke workflows or toolkits, or collaborative approaches to general challenges. We welcome contributions from both seasoned technical chefs and first-time bakers; whether your tool is fully baked or still in the proofing stage, we want to hear from you!

For more details on how to submit your tool and what to expect, visit the Call for Contributions page.

Bake Off submissions are currently open until 31 July 2025, End of Day, Anywhere on Earth.