Archives and the Digital Library

Citation

Rodrigues, T. (2008), "Archives and the Digital Library", Online Information Review, Vol. 32 No. 1, pp. 116-117. https://doi.org/10.1108/14684520810866038

Archives and the Digital Library consists of 12 chapters by various experts in the field of information management who present their perspectives on the contributions of the archival profession in the world of digital libraries. The focus of the book is the digitisation of the unique content of information resources with which archivists deal.

The introductory chapter is a preliminary discussion of the important role archives and archivists play in the development of the digital library, including digital collections, preservation and management of digital information and the archival approach to appraisal and accessioning. However, the author highlights the fact that, although the contributions of the archival profession are unique, archivists still need to collaborate with other information experts for the successful development of digital libraries.

In the first section of the book the authors report on case studies involving the contributions of archives to the digital library in developing non‐licensed content. For example, the article by Turner about the Local History Digital Resources Project explores how the infrastructure of the California Digital Library is used to preserve and promote public access to digitised local history collections, while the article by Guerard and Chandler reports on the California Cultures Project as a case study focusing on the architecture and framework needed to assist in the deployment of digital objects as virtual collections at the California Digital Library.

The next section of the book examines usability issues and options for the end user of digital libraries. The article by Lack explains that it is increasingly important for digital libraries and archives to create usable services that meet their users' needs and that the input of users at all stages of development can assist in achieving this, while the article by Proffitt examines the how and why of user studies. The article by Burns gives an example of a viable approach archivists may consider in meeting increased user demands for access to digital images.

In the final section technology, preservation and management issues are examined. The article by Guenther and Myrick explores some of the technical challenges involved in managing web archives, as well as metadata strategies for providing descriptive, technical and preservation‐related information about archived websites. Jantz and Giarlo elaborate on the importance of digital repositories being able to preserve electronic materials for the long term. The importance of developing reliable or so‐called “trusted digital repositories” is emphasised.

Finally, Westbrook et al. describe the development of the Archivists' Toolkit, a software application designed to support the creation and management of archival information. The authors propose this application as a possible step towards streamlined archive processing in the digital environment.

Archives and the Digital Library is important reading for archivists and other information professionals who want an understanding of what a digital library entails and how archival materials and the archivist fit into the world of the digital library.