Scraps needs a unique ID for each "object" (rectangle + annotation) within an IMT file. The id value in the <rect id="xxxx"> tag and the matching n value in the <div n="xxxx" type="imtAnnotation"> tag can be used for this; however:

• The ID should be visible to the user in the Annotation Details window for each annotation object.
• The user should be able to set the ID for each object, or set the ID prefix and let the system add a sequential number. The default could be to just assign an ID that the user could override. IMT can ensure the validity and uniqueness of the IDs in a file.
• IMT should not change the ID once it is assigned (the ID changes when the order of items is changed). The ID should be static.

This is also true of the <TEI xml:id="xxxxx"> tag, which IMT sets to the file name. The user should be able to see this ID, and ideally set it, to provide a static ID for the object being marked up.

Having static IDs, and ideally user-settable IDs, would help with linking an object in one IMT file to a related object in another IMT file. For example, on a scrapbook page that has been marked up in IMT file 1 there is an object that is a multipage booklet, and the booklet is marked up in IMT file 2. The ID of the annotation object in file 1 could be used as the xml:id in file 2, establishing a link between the files. The ID could also be used in the annotation itself to refer explicitly to an object that is in the same file or another file. Without static and visible IDs, there is no reliable way to establish such links.