Digital Libraries: Variety of Perspectives and Models ()
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Transcript Digital Libraries: Variety of Perspectives and Models ()
Digital Libraries:
Variety of perspectives and
models
Tefko Saracevic, Ph.D.
School of Communication, Information and Library Studies
Rutgers University
New Brunswick, New Jersey, U.S.A.
[email protected]
http://www.scils.rutgers.edu/people/
faculty/tefko.html
On the scene
Several
different communities involved in
digital libraries, each with quite different
perspectives,
concepts, meanings in dealing
concentration, emphasis, approach
Many
disciplines, institutions involved
National & global interest
Large research and developmental projects
Large operational projects
Large commercial undertakings
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Why?
Evolution
of information society
role
of knowledge & knowledge records
importance to records in digital forms
Strategic
place of information
to
society, economy, future
strategic policies for support in many countries
digital libraries part of that strategy
Technological
just
imperative
the right time for application to DL
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Basic problems addressed
Creating
means & ways for dealing with &
using human knowledge records in the new
digitalized and networked world
What to do with the electronic “book”, journals,
publications, images, sounds, assembly of data?
Problems are technical, organizational,
managerial, social, legal, economic, cultural …
Digital revolution may be as far reaching as that
created by Gutenberg & the printed book
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What is a DIGITAL LIBRARY?
No
single, all-encompassing answer
Several perspectives
from different communities - different agendas
Little
communication among them
Coherent, integrating concept, approach not
yet emerged - but do we need?
Complex problems in any approach
Many
Highly
experiments; many experts & “experts”
exciting & volatile area; big $$$$$
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Criteria
1. User community
2. Digital collection
3. Organization - physical, intellectual
4. Interface - access, physical, intellectual
5. Delivery
6. Persistence
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Research support: two models
1. Digital Libraries Initiatives approach:
seek
& fund research topics, mostly in
technological areas
Examples:
DLI
1 & 2 in the US
ERCIM DLI: DELOS working group
2. Collaboration seeking approach
involving
different communities: libraries,
publishers, institutions, users …
Germany: Global Info; UK: electronic libraries
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Computer science, engineering
Concentrating
on R&D
Technology centered
distributed
& organized knowledge resources
in electronic, digital formats
diverse
types of information
– texts, images, sounds, multimedia
new
kind of distributed database services to
manage unstructured multimedia resources
Important
for infrastructure
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Examples of research areas
Interoperability
between heterogeneous collections
Data integration - text, video, sound; metadata
Network protocols and standards
Search engines & agents for searching, filtering,
navigating, summarizing, integration
Visualization & other interactive technology
browsing
Scaling
large volumes of texts & imagery; display
R&D to large collections, applications
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Widening scope of topics
In
DLI 2 8 projects funded so far:
Document
selection and expert problem solvers
Image filtering for medical information
Automatic reference librarians for the web
New techniques for humanities collections
Software data lbrary
DL classification system
Undergraduate education:
– DL test bed for science education
– Virtual skeleton for study in anatomy
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Challenges
Interdisciplinarity
DL appropriated
absent
by computer science and
engineering
Users
and human issues absent
human
centered design pushed as rhetoric only
Widening
how
array of topics
do they fit into a digital library concept?
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Library perspective
Concentrates
on institutions, service, practice
logical extension of libraries
Content,
collection centered
Creation
of digital collections
variety
of materials
repositories of digital materials
Access
Guided
to collections
by service mission
various
environments, user communities
various degrees of integration or separation
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Revolves around Digital Library
Federation (DLF) definition
“Digital libraries are organizations that provide
the resources, including the specialized staff,
to select, structure, offer intellectual access to,
interpret, distribute, preserve the integrity of,
and ensure the persistence over time of
collections of digital works so that they are
readily and economically available for use by a
defined community or set of communities.”
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Several models
Digitizing
Large
model (mostly heritage model):
number in the U.S. - various institutions - e.g.:
Library of Congress: American Memory Project: http://memory.loc.gov
libraries becoming publishers
Consortium
National
model
Digital Library of the Library of Congress
redefines mission “provide the widest possible access to
knowledge & information for educating a free society.”
Comprehensive
Example:
service model
California Digital Library (CDL)
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Illustration of use ...
My computer in
Zagreb
HiNet impulses work
Rutgers server
CDL
Through indexes to a journal
Springer, Germany
Found an abstract
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Challenges
Integration
between print and digital
mixing
new digital technology with print, local with
global; managing diverse resources - all difficult
Competition
for scarce resources sharpening
Institutional & social adjustments not easy
Resistance, threats:
guerilla
warfare within and nuclear annihilation without
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Disciplinary perspective
Concentrates
on collections & new forms of
publishing in their area - discipline centered
Association model:
scientific
& technical societies provide DL in their area
Example: ACM Digital Library
Public access to a certain parts
Subscription for full text - subscription library model
Disciplinary
providing
Brown
these
units model:
collection of information in their field e.g.
University Physics Internet Resources
are more link than DL - handbook model
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Publishing perspective
Commercial
Example:
digital publishing & library model
Elsevier Science Direct
– own & other journals, mostly digitized print journals
– indexes, abstracts, online services
– various subscription, access & delivery modes
Replacement
Example:
of scholarly journal model
e-Print archive
– submission of reports, archiving, searching & free access to full
text in various science fields; issue of peer review not resolved
Newspaper
Example
model:
Wall Street Journal Online
– coupling with newspaper morgue & many other resources
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Exchange of roles
Libraries
and publishers had a well defined
relation - now it is blurring
publishers
have libraries
libraries started publishing
publishers provide server (“shelf”) space
licensing rather than ownership becomes
predominant transaction mode
Newspapers
based
discovered a new model
on their strength of editorial processes
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Policy perspective
Legal
issues
copyright
protection
database security
intellectual freedom
equity
Technical
issues
standards
scaling
equity
Above
implementation
& beyond DL, but DL bring out
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Futurists’ perspective
Concentrate
on social future
Third wave centered
Manifestation
of the World Brain
Universal
access to organized world’s
knowledge
Prophesies: Disappearance of libraries,
books, librarians
Utopian to a large degree
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Economic issues
Costs
not insignificant - WHO PAYS?
Presently
Dilemma
R&D support from agencies - but after?
in library budgets
licensing
of digital publications vs. subscriptions
Publishers’
economics for digital publications
approaches
vary, not settled, even scared
even: who is a publisher? - lines blurring
Economics
room
of digital libraries still up in the air
for research & experimentation
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Social issues
Individual:
role
privacy protection; rights; obligations
in information exchanges, work, needs; life ...
Organizations:
integration; changing structure
Traditional libraries: disappearing? changing?
Impact: on research, business, education?
Education: professional, continuing, general
Computing & society: growing disparity between
information rich & poor
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General opportunities
Building
digital collections of national importance
from existing texts, documents, images
historical,
educational, strategic, legislative …
Creating
new digital documents & linking them
Cataloging Internet resources in own domain
Selecting digital resources from wherever &
creating & maintaining linkages
Developing/adapting search engines & other
management tools for digital collections
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General opportunities … continued
Providing
access to digital collections
Integrating digital & other library collections
incl.
integration of OPACs & library management tools
Establishing
services for digital libraries
online
access & offline support
education & training of users, and librarians
Addressing
social, legal, policy issues
Cooperative national & international ventures
Outsourcing services; going into business of DL
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Conclusions
“War is too important a matter to
be left to the generals.”
Georges Clemenceau
Digital
libraries are too important to be left
to any one discipline, any one agency
Why? Work on digital libraries is defining the
future of handling of human knowledge records
Caught a lot of interest globally & politically
They are also redefining the role of libraries in
society & the role of librarians & inf. specialists
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Conclusions … continued
Digital
libraries provide challenge & opportunity
for cooperative, interdisciplinary ventures
Provide a GREAT opportunity for many institutions
to participate in many ways
Have
room for smaller institutions & projects
Digital
libraries will not replace libraries
But no matter what: libraries and information
agencies cannot escape digital libraries, must change
so
might as well actively join the movement
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