Building Digital Libraries: a how-to-do-it manual (Number 153)

Abstract

World Digital Libraries 2(2): 161–162 ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ Book review Building Digital Libraries: a how-to-do-it manual (Number 153) Terry Reese Jr. and Kyle Banerjee Reviewed by Shantanu Ganguly* In the digital age, libraries need to preserve and provide access to digital resources, but traditional library procedures and tools from the brick-and-mortar type library are often not suited to this task. Physical libraries and their access mechanisms rely upon a publishing model that slowly evolved over several years. In this model, each resource (book, globe, audiotape) consists of an object or objects in a single format, and each object remains static over a period of time. Methods of building and cataloguing physical library collections depend on these constants. A digital library exists within a very different framework. A single resource (for example, a portal), yet each of these objects is a resource in its own right. These objects may be updated frequently, and their original formats may become obsolete as technological developments lead to new types of information resources. Due to these differences, creating a digital library requires a new set of skills. This book is a unique tool kit for the new world of digital libraries. It demystifies the challenges of designing, constructing, and maintaining a digital repository. This book covers both the fundamentals of digital library theory and the World Digital Libraries 2(2): 161–162 details of how to implement a digital collection. No specific technical knowledge is required. Each chapter discusses the capabilities and limitations of specific technology and reflects important developments of the last few years, with a focus on tools that are applicable and appropriate to a variety of environments. Each chapter in Building Digital Libraries focuses on a step in the process, addressing both how to execute that step and how to combat challenges encountered along the way. Chapter 1, ‘Planning a Digital Repository,’ provides the reader with an understanding as to how the integrity of information can be protected over a period of time, how to safeguard a repository against natural and man-made disasters, and how to accommodate the problem of constantly changing formats. Chapter 2, ‘Acquiring, Processing, Classifying, and Describing Digital Content’, discusses specialized access mechanisms, processing and acquisitions, and maintenance; it also emphasizes the critical importance of good workflow. Chapter 3, ‘Choosing a Repository Architecture’ describes several frameworks for Neal-Schumann Publishers, Inc. 2008. 277 pages Paper back Price $75