Why Digitize

This paper is a response to discussions of digitization at meetings of the National Humanities Alliance (NHA). NHA asked the Council on Library and Information Resources (CLIR) to evaluate the experiences of cultural institutions with digitization projects to date and to summarize what has been learned about the advantages and disadvantages of digitizing culturally significant materials. Findings revealed that digitization often raises expectations of benefits, cost reductions, and efficiencies that can be illusory and, if not viewed realistically, have the potential to put at risk the collections and services libraries have provided for decades. One such false expectation--that digital conversion has already or will shortly replace microfilming as the preferred medium for preservation reformatting--could result in irreversible losses of information. This paper defines digital information; identifies weaknesses of digitization as a preservation treatment; discusses the benefits and drawbacks of digital technology for access; and highlights issues institutions must consider in contemplating a digital conversion project. (AEF)

In the sciences, the merits and ramifications of open accessa the electronic publishing model that gives readers free, irrevocable, worldwide, and perpetual access to researcha have been vigorously debated. Open access is now increasingly proposed as a valid means of both disseminating knowledge and career advancement. In Digitize This Book! Gary Hall presents a timely and ambitious polemic on the potential that open access publishing has to transform both a papercentrica humanities scholarship and the institution of the university itself.

Takes a fresh look at basic digital design. From definition, to example, to graphic illustration, to simulation result, the book progresses through the main themes of digital design. Technically up-to-date, this book covers all the latest topics: Field programmable gate arrays, PALs and ROMs. The latest memory chips for SRAM and DRAM are shown. Software for creating the excitation equations of FSM are covered, as well as LogicWorks and Beige Bag PC and more.

Part of the "Digital Futures" series, this book presents information managers with strategic and practical issues to consider when making the decision to digitize their collections. It runs through the process step by step, and outlines the techniques available to deal with a range of resources.

Starting a Digitization Center provides a complete overview of the digitization process and how to set up a digitization center, from the earliest stages of development to putting collections online. It covers: Essential steps and standards, acquiring the essentials needed for imaging/digitizing, including equipment, software, hardware, personnel and housing, finding partners/collaborators, locating training and online resources, obtaining funding, setting up guidelines, formats, websites and putting collections online. Stresses the importance of collaboration, tips for finding partners and working with others Serves as a practical handbook and it acts as a manual, and guides readers to finding more advanced resources Focuses on creating a good digitisation center/project with extremely limited funds and/or low budget

Music libraries often contain much more than books, scores, and recordings; they are also home to a wealth of archival music materials. Despite having archival holdings, many music librarians struggle to provide adequate storage, description, and access to these materials. Remaining cognizant of the wide variety of funding and staffing available to music libraries across North America, this basic manual provides an entry point into the archival profession for music librarians without formal archival training. At the same time the manual also serves as a ready-reference book for those already familiar with basic archival practices. This manual discusses archival theory alongside archival principles and practices, explaining key concepts and developments in acquisition, appraisal, arrangement, description, preservation, digitization, and funding. These fundamentals are demonstrated throughout the manual by numerous examples and hypothetical situations a music librarian is likely to encounter while managing archival music collections.

Digitizing your collection is not only a great way to increase access to your materials, it also engages patrons on a whole new level and helps communicate your library’s value. But with staff time and resources already spread thin, it can be a challenge to plan and undertake a digitization initiative. The good news is that public libraries across the country have done just that. Here, the authors share lessons and tips for success, showing the way to getting your collection online. With succinct and practical guidance that can be adapted to any size institution, this book explains why public libraries should take digitization seriously, listing key points that can be used to get stakeholders on board;points out what you should consider before undertaking a digitization project;discusses copyright and other access-related issues;shows how public libraries are handling funding and finding collaborative partners; shares ways that libraries have used digitization projects for community outreach and to promote collections; and offers advice on marketing and media.Many libraries across the country have found ways to create wonderful digital collections, and this book shows you how you can too.

Discover Digital Libraries: Theory and Practice is a book that integrates both research and practice concerning digital library development, use, preservation, and evaluation. The combination of current research and practical guidelines is a unique strength of this book. The authors bring in-depth expertise on different digital library issues and synthesize theoretical and practical perspectives relevant to researchers, practitioners, and students. The book presents a comprehensive overview of the different approaches and tools for digital library development, including discussions of the social and legal issues associated with digital libraries. Readers will find current research and the best practices of digital libraries, providing both US and international perspectives on the development of digital libraries and their components, including collection, digitization, metadata, interface design, sustainability, preservation, retrieval, and evaluation of digital libraries. Offers an overview of digital libraries and the conceptual and practical understanding of digital libraries Presents the lifecycle of digital library design, use, preservation and evaluation, including collection development, digitization of static and multimedia resources, metadata, digital library development and interface design, digital information searching, digital preservation, and digital library evaluation Synthesizes current research and the best practices of digital libraries, providing both US and international perspectives on the development of digital libraries Introduces new developments in the area of digital libraries, such as large-scale digital libraries, social media applications in digital libraries, multilingual digital libraries, digital curation, linked data, rapid capture, guidelines for the digitization of multimedia resources Highlights the impact, challenges, suggestions for overcoming these challenges, and trends of present and future development of digital libraries Offers a comprehensive bibliography for each chapter