Documentation of Archival Procedures
We can certainly understand why you might be suspicious of entrusting someone else to manage your data. While we have tried to create a system of content preservation that is as failproof as possible, there is no 100% guarantee that your content will be accessible forever. Please note that if you are truly, genuinely concerned about the long-term storage of your content, submitting your files here should ideally only be one of several measures you take in order to help preserve your data. Do not rely completely on us, because we cannot accept any sort of liability in the case of data loss. While the chances of us losing anything is incredibly small and virtually zero, we thought it would be worthwhile to include that brief disclaimer.
If you are still unsure about moving forward, we will use this page to detail, to the best of our ability, exactly what steps we take when you send in your downloads and their corresponding screenshots. Our goal is that after reading this, you have a very clear conception of exactly what steps are taken to preserve your data, and you can trust that we are being completely transparent with you about the process.
First, we should mention that the submission form, linked on the Download Submission Procedures page, is hosted on a service called "Jotform", which is unique among form makers in that it allows users to create forms that accept file uploads. By using Jotform, we don't need to require users to create an account on a file-sharing service or send share links to their files. This is an effort to make things as convenient as possible for people wishing to submit their downloads, as well as eliminating the likelihood of broken file share links.
Once users fill out the form and click "Submit", we will be notified of the submission instantly. Submissions are sent directly to the staff's personal email, and we will do our best to read them and act upon them very soon after they come in, typically within a few days. Any files that are uploaded to the submission form are also automatically sent to a dedicated, private Google Drive account for added redundancy.
Once we have read through your submission, we will then download all files that you have sent in and thoroughly scan them for viruses and malware. We accomplish this in part by uploading them to a service called VirusTotal. This service, now owned by Google, will scan any file that is uploaded to their servers for viruses and malware using approximately sixty (60) different antivirus and anti-malware software programs, including reputable brands such as Avast, AVG, Comodo, Malwarebytes, McAfee, Microsoft and Webroot, among others. A full list of antivirus providers can be found on their website. If any file that you have sent fails any antivirus scan, for the purpose of public safety, we cannot add your file to the download database or make it available to the public. While we realize that there may be false positives in some cases, we will not be publicly listing any files with a positive result on a virus scan. If this happens, we will make you aware of the result, and you will have the opportunity to modify your files in some way that makes them test successfully, and you will be permitted to send them in again.
Next, we will reach out to you using the medium you requested in the upload form. Expect to hear from us within the next few days after sending in the form. The reason we ask you for this is so that we can confirm it was really you who filled out the form, rather than someone impersonating you. It's also important for us to establish some line of communication with you in case we have any questions about your responses, or request documentation of permission if you are submitting someone else's work. If we cannot get in contact with you, we cannot proceed to archive your content.
After that, we will begin the process of storing things away. We have registered at least half a dozen accounts on cloud storage services that have been dedicated for the sole purpose of DreamZoo2 download storage and preservation. Since these accounts will only be used to store user downloads, they are not synced with any local folders on personal devices. This significantly reduces the risk that anything would be accidentally deleted, since these accounts would be rarely accessed.
We will first upload your download, as well as any screenshots, to a dedicated, private Google Drive account. Then, within minutes, that new uploaded content will automatically be replicated to another Google Drive account, a Microsoft Onedrive account, a Box account, a Dropbox account and an Amazon Cloud Drive account. This redundancy allows us to rest assured that even if Google, Microsoft, and Amazon were to all have catastrophic large-scale data losses, all of our files would still be safe and sound in other locations. If you are interested in creating a similar setup for yourself, in which different cloud storage services automatically synchronize with one another, you can do so using CloudHQ for free. It's a wonderful service that we highly recommend.
We will then take your download and list it publicly on this site's download database, assuming you ticked the box to give permission on the upload form. To view an example of what your page would look like, please take a look at Makaio's American Black Bear. The download link, as well as links to full size images, will be direct Google Drive links. Google Drive is a service that we can be confident will be around for the long term, making it ideal for preservation purposes.
Finally, we will be taking advantage of the Internet Archive to help store your content. We will upload your files so that they are publicly listed on the Internet Archive's public listing, assuming you checked the box giving your permission. We will also tag your files with "DreamZoo2" and "DreamZoo2 Downloads", in order to make them all organized and easy to find. To see an example of how your files might look, please take a look at Makaio's American Black Bear. The download is a ZIP file, located at the right side of the screen, under "DOWNLOAD OPTIONS".
Then, once we can confirm everything is in working order, we will then contact you and provide you with the respective links to your content. And, that's it! We hope we were as thorough as necessary to give you the gist of what we will do to safeguard your content in the long term, but if you have any questions, please refer to the Frequently Asked Questions page, in which we answer common questions. If your question is not answered to your satisfaction, please send an email to the following email address:
Thanks, and we look forward to working with you!