What is a PURL?
Functionally, a PURL is a URL. * What does a PURL do? Instead of pointing directly to the location of an Internet resource, a PURL points to an intermediate resolution service. The resolution service associates the PURL with a specific URL and completes the appropriate network transfer. Technically, the PURL resolver does a standard http “redirect” and your Web browser completes the network transfer. —– PURL———————->| |———————->Resource points to PURL | | associated URL points resolver | | to resource | | —– Resolver associates PURL with unique URL; maintenance component facilitates creation of PURLs and modification of associated URLs. * What does a PURL look like? PURLs look like URLs. Here’s a PURL taken from a record in the InterCat Catalog: http://purl.oclc.org/oclc/oluc/32127398/1 ^^^^ ————- ——————– / | \ protocol resolver address name * Why do we need PURLs? Sometimes URLs do not work because Internet resources move, change
