An authoritative examination of current issues, themes and techniques on the use of digital collections by an international team of well-respected librarians, archivists and scholars.
Although a huge investment has been made in digitizing scholarly and cultural heritage materials there has been limited examination of actual use and impact. As the creative, cultural and educational sectors face a period of restricted funding, it is critical to consider their value to the institutions that host them and to the communities of users they serve in order to encourage quality, longevity and further investment. This edited collection provides a snapshot of theory and practice internationally, interweaving global case studies with up to date coverage of policy concerns, best practice, evaluation criteria and metrics.
The following key issues are dealt with:
- What is the role of digital resources in the research life cycle?
- Do the arts and humanities face a ‘data deluge’?
- How are digital collections to be sustained over the long term?
- How is use and impact to be assessed?
- What is the role of digital collections in the ‘digital economy’?
- How is public engagement with digital cultural heritage materials to be assessed and supported?
Readership : This book will be invaluable to academics, librarians, archivists and the staff of cultural heritage organizations, as well as funders and other key stakeholders with an interest in the development and long term sustainability of digital collections.
Table of Content
Foreword – Christine L Borgman 1. Introduction: the value, use and impact of digital collections – Lorna M Hughes
PART 1: DIGITAL TRANSFORMATIONS IN LIBRARIES, MUSEUMS AND ARCHIVES
2. The digital library – Andrew Prescott 3. The digital museum – Claire Hudson 4. The digital archive – Gillian Oliver
PART 2: UNDERSTANDING AND MEASURING THE USE, IMPACT AND VALUE OF DIGITAL COLLECTIONS
5. A strategic approach to the understanding and evaluation of impact – Ben Showers 6. User needs in digitization – Milena Dobreva, Andy O’Dwyer and Leo Konstantelos 7. Measuring impact and use: scholarly information-seeking behaviour – Claire Ross, Melissa Terras and Vera Motyckova 8. The value and impact of digitized resources for learning, teaching, research and enjoyment – Simon Tanner
PART 3: ENHANCING THE FUTURE IMPACT AND VALUE OF DIGITAL COLLECTIONS
9. Using ICT methods and tools in arts and humanities research – Lorna M Hughes 10. Creating a research data infrastructure: policy and practicalities – Ann Borda and Lyle Winton 11. Improving sustainability of publicly funded digital resources – David Robey
About the author
Professor Lorna Hughes is the University of Wales Chair in Digital Collections, based in the National Library of Wales. She is a Senior Research Fellow at the Centre for Advanced Welsh and Celtic Studies.
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