Digital Libraries Technology And Management Of Indigenous Knowledge For Global Access

This book constitutes the refereed proceedings of the 6th International Conference on Asian Digital Libraries, ICADL 2003, held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia in December 2003. The 68 revised full papers presented together with 15 poster abstracts and 3 invited papers were carefully reviewed from numerous submissions. The papers are organized in topical sections on information retrieval techniques, multimedia digital libraries, data mining and digital libraries, machine architecture and organization, human resources and training, human-computer interaction, digital library infrastructure, building and using digital libraries, knowledge management, intellectual property rights and copyright, e-learning and mobile learning, data storage and retrieval, digital library services, content development, information retrieval and Asian languages, and metadata.

This book constitutes the refereed proceedings of the 6th International Conference on Asian Digital Libraries, ICADL 2003, held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia in December 2003. The 68 revised full papers presented together with 15 poster abstracts and 3 invited papers were carefully reviewed from numerous submissions. The papers are organized in topical sections on information retrieval techniques, multimedia digital libraries, data mining and digital libraries, machine architecture and organization, human resources and training, human-computer interaction, digital library infrastructure, building and using digital libraries, knowledge management, intellectual property rights and copyright, e-learning and mobile learning, data storage and retrieval, digital library services, content development, information retrieval and Asian languages, and metadata.

Indigenous knowledge is regarded as undocumented cultural, local, traditional, and community knowledge produced and owned by local people in their specific communities. It is mainly preserved in the memories of elders and shared or passed on from generation to generation through oral communication, traditional practices, and demonstrations. This irreplaceable resource may be lost forever as a direct result of the pressures of modernization, colonization, and globalization. Concern over the loss of Indigenous knowledge has thus raised a need for the preservation and documentation of this knowledge in digital formats. Digital Preservation and Documentation of Global Indigenous Knowledge Systems determines how Indigenous knowledge can be documented and digitally preserved to benefit Indigenous knowledge owners and their communities and be accessible for future generations. The book provides the best practices, innovative strategies, theoretical and conceptual frameworks, and empirical research findings regarding the digital preservation and documentation of Indigenous knowledge systems worldwide. Covering topics such as digital media platforms, educational management, and knowledge systems, this premier reference source is a valuable and useful tool for students, information professionals, knowledge managers, records managers, Indigenous knowledge owners, Indigenous community leaders, librarians, archivists, computer scientists, information technology specialists, students and educators of higher education, researchers, and academicians.

This book constitutes the refereed proceedings of the 9th International Conference on Asian Digital Libraries, ICADL 2006, held in Kyoto, Japan in November 2006. The 46 revised full papers, 14 revised short papers, and 6 poster papers include coverage of information extraction, information retrieval, metadata, architectures for digital libraries and archives, ontologies, information seeking, cultural heritage and e-learning.

Digital Reference Services in Academic Libraries presents the background of DRS, evolution of DRS, the concept of DRS, emerging models of DRS, benefits and limitation of DRS, personalized services, trends and challenges, technological developments, evaluation and guidelines, effectiveness and DRS in academic libraries. The case study examined the existing status of digital reference services (DRS) in four selected public academic libraries in Malaysia. Focused is given on the awareness, usage, users’ perception, users’ satisfaction, library’s performance, and looked at the perceived needs, issues and problems faced by librarians and students. The study is important to determine how academic librarians are exploiting the latest information and communication technologies to improve reference service operations. Recommendations are made on the need for the implementation of synchronous DRS, enhancing the role of DRS, marketing and promotion, staff training, user education programmes and cooperation. The main contribution of this book is the assessment of effectiveness of DRS in academic libraries in Malaysia, the identification of perceived needs, issues and problems and suggestions on the areas of improvement in the use of DRS. In the process, a conceptual model for the effectiveness of the implementation of DRS in academic libraries in Malaysia is presented. The author also proposes directions for future research in the area of DRS.