Page 115 - DLIS408_INFORMATION_TECHNOLOGY-APPLICATIONSL SCIENCES

Information Technology and Application

Notes Multiple accesses. The same resources can be used simultaneously by a number of institu-
tions and patrons. This may not be the case for copyrighted material: a library may have a
license for “lending out” only one copy at a time; this is achieved with a system of digital
rights management where a resource can become inaccessible after expiration of the lending
period or after the lender chooses to make it inaccessible (equivalent to returning the re-
source).
Information retrieval. The user is able to use any search term (word, phrase, title, name,
and subject) to search the entire collection. Digital libraries can provide very user-friendly
interfaces, giving clickable access to its resources.
Preservation and conservation. Digitization is not a long-term preservation solution for
physical collections, but does succeed in providing access copies for materials that would
otherwise fall to degradation from repeated use. Digitized collections and born-digital ob-
jects pose many preservation and conservation concerns that analog materials do not. Please
see the following “Problems” section of this page for examples.
Space. Traditional libraries are limited by storage space, digital libraries have the potential to
store much more information; simply because digital information requires very little physi-
cal space to contain them and media storage technologies are more affordable than ever
before.
Added value. Certain characteristics of objects, primarily the quality of images, may be
improved. Digitization can enhance legibility and remove visible flaws such as stains and
discoloration.

Task Digital libraries have the potential to store much information. Justify.

Self Assessment

Fill in the blanks:
1. A .................... is a library in which collections are stored in digital formats and accessible
by computers.
2. The term digital libraries was first popularized by the NSF/DARPA/NASA Digital
libraries initiative in .................... .
3. OAI-PMH stands for .................... .
4. ICDL stands for .................... .

10.3 Challenges of Digital Library

Digital Preservation

Digital preservation aims to ensure that digital media and information systems are still interpretable
into the indefinite future. Each necessary component of the must be migrated, preserved or emulated.
Typically lower levels of systems (floppy disks for example) are emulated, bit-streams (the actual
files stored in the disks) are preserved and operating systems are emulated as a virtual machine.
Only where the meaning and content of digital media and information systems are well understood
is migration possible, as is the case for office documents.

Copyright and Licensing

Some people have criticized that digital libraries are hampered by copyright law, because works
cannot be shared over different periods of time in the manner of a traditional library. The
republication of material on the Web by libraries may require permission from rights holders,

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