The Truth Is in the File

The truth is in the file strategy usually refers to metadata (Exif, IPTC, XMP), but the argument can be extended to cover all plain text (e.g. transcriptions) and binary data (e.g. audio data). TTIIF thus stands in contrast to the truth is in the database, in which a user might access an image document, but have to retrieve associated text and other files separately (even if they are linked in the database).

There is a middle way, as exemplified by sidecar files (i.e. XMP for file formats without internal support), but these can be also lost in transmission.

Putting all one's eggs in one basket can be a smart (portmanteau) strategy if the basket's integrity can be readily confirmed. Of course, document size will increase, but with today's information infrastructure this is no longer a significant issue. High-bandwidth Internet access, ever larger storage capacities and the growing emphasis on information portability, digital workflows, asset management, discovery, and repurposing all mean that conjunction is more important than compression.