Recognising filetypes

Sometimes, metadata extractors cannot read the file. In such cases, it is essential to recognize the file type before it can be processed further.  The file could also be corrupted, and therefore will not open correctly. Luckily there are some programs that can help.

• Droid - One of the most widely used open source tools for file type recognition
• JHOVE - In addition to retrieving metadata, JHOVE also detects filetypes
• Linux file command -  Embedded to all major Linux / Unix / nix distributions, does a decent job
• Text editor(s)- Not specifically created for filetype recognition, but opening a file with a text editor might reveal something about its type and content

All assignments under this metadata / content section are based on result from Droid & notepad++ text editor.  To ensure the operation of automated assignment check, it is recommended to use the same apps, but feel free to try any available applications.