PILIN Abstract use Cases Template
Template
Name | A name for the use case |
Summary | A brief (one- or two-sentence) description of the problem or goals |
Narrative | Longer description of problem – what the current situation is, and what needs to happen |
Primary Actors | Description of people and systems directly involved |
Preconditions | What conditions are presumed to be already in place, so that the use case can come about? |
Main Success Scenario | What is supposed to happen? Give the steps that need to be taken (up to eight) |
Alternative Path | How else could this be achieved? (Or, how can things go wrong) |
Business Rules | Are there any rules specific to your enterprise that need to be followed while the use case is taking place? |
Notes |
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See below for illustration.
Name | Resolve to Digital Object Persistently |
Summary | An identifier is used as a persistent locator for a digital object: it resolves to that digital object. |
Narrative | An identifier is assigned to a digital object. The identifier needs to resolve to the digital object (or an appropriate representation of it), so long as it is available, and wherever it may currently happen to be located. |
Primary Actors | End User, Digital Object Manager, Identifier Manager |
Preconditions | Digital Object is managed: a party is responsible for maintaining the object online, keeping track of its current location, and updating its identifier resolution. Identifier is actionable: services (including resolution) can use the identifier as a parameter. |
Main Success Scenario | Identifier is associated with digital object. Identifier is made resolvable. Identifier is published. Digital Object Manager changes Digital Object location. Digital Object Manager updates identifier resolution. End user accesses identifier through a service. Identifier resolves to current digital object locator. |
Alternative Path | A4. Digital Object becomes unavailable. Identifier resolution changes to metadata informing user of alternate pathways for access (e.g. offline), or descriptive metadata. A5. Digital Object location changes, but identifier resolution fails to be updated. Identifier manager discovers this and escalates request to Digital Object Manager to initiate update. A7. Identifier resolution fails to be updated, and Identifier manager fails to provide alternative resolution. End user accesses identifier, which resolves to a broken link. |
Business Rules | Whenever the location of the referent changes, there is a procedure to update the resolution of the identifier promptly, and to verify the update. If the identifier resolution is out of date, authority metadata is available, through which the request for update is escalated. Persistent identifiers are not unpublished: if they cease resolving to the digital object, resolve to metadata. Once published, an identifier must not change or be patched. |
Notes | Persistent service invocation means that the parameters and results of a service call must only be changed additively: removing parameters or changing the type of result compromises persistence. Not all persistent identifiers persist for archival timespans. |
The PILIN project is funded by the Australian Commonwealth Department of Education, Science and Training, (DEST) under the Systemic Infrastructure Initiative (SII) as part of the Commonwealth Government’s Backing Australia’s Ability – An Innovation Action Plan for the Future (BAA) under the ARROW Project.