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The Information Explosion, development of technology, increase in the numberof users, and their varied information needs have made the libraries to applymodern technology. As a result, the digital information is developed. Now, it isessential for the libraries to Collect, Retrieve, Store, Dissemination communicate

and store the information electronically. Hence these changes transformed thelibraries to Digital Libraries, Learning Resource Centers and Information systems.

The computer and communication technology has resulted in a remarkableexpansion in the ability to generate process and disseminate digital information.These new development have made new forms of knowledge repositories. Digitallibrary is one of the channels. Digital library indicates the provision of range ofmaterials in digitized form.Digital LibraryA digital library is a library consisting of digital materials and services. Digitalmaterials are items that are store, processed and transferred via digital librarydevices and networks. Digital services are services (such as reference assistance)that are delivered digitally over computer networks. Digital library Federationframed a definition of digital library as Digital libraries are organization thatprovides the resources, including the intellectual staff, to select, structure,

preserve the integrity of and ensure the persistence over time of collections ofdigital works so that they are readily and economically available for use by aDefined set of communities.The digital libraries may be defined as the new way of carrying out the functionsof libraries, encompassing new type of information resources new approachesto acquisition; new methods of storage and preservations; new approaches toclassification and cataloging; intensive use of electronic systems and networks;and dramatic shifts in intellectual, organizational and electronic practice.

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Digital library is system providing a community of users with coherent access toa large, organized repository of information and knowledge. The digital libraryis not just one entity, but multiple sources seamlessly integrated. The digital

libraries endow with a structural and planned entrance to information stuffing ina dispersed environment and assist users in searching evaluating and utilizingresources irrespective of their format. Improved information retrieval andenhanced document delivery capabilities are widely acclaimed strength of digitallibrary in a networked environment through internet and internet in library andinformation center.

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The US Association of Research Libraries Identified Five Elements Common to allDefinitions of Digital Libraries:

The digital library is not a single entity;

The digital library requires technology to link the resources;

Linkages between digital libraries and information services are transparent;

Universal access to digital library must be a goal;

Digital library collections are restricted to document surrogates but includedigital artifacts that have no printed equivalent

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Salient Features of a Digital Library:

Site neutrality

Open access

Greater variety and granularity of information

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Sharing of information

Up-to-date ness

Always available

New forum of rendering

Everything can be stored

Universal accessibility

Modifiability

Why Digital Libraries?Digital libraries have their unique advantages. They satisfy the information needsof users in different circumstances. They play a different role and each serves theneeds of users in different ways. Digital libraries offer a wide range of new access

opportunities that are absent in the traditional environment, including remoteaccess, 24-hour access, and multiple users for single sources. The arrival andproliferation of electronic resources and digital libraries have already influencedand changed the way academics and scholars use print resources and traditionallibraries. It has also sparked a new wave of literature on the perceptions andpreferences of print and electronic resources.The purpose of Digital Library Initiative is to advance the means to gather, store,and organize information in digital forms, and make it available for searching,retrieval, and processing via communication networks in user friendly ways.Reason behind so many libraries and other institutions, turned their handsto creating digital libraries is to do with advances in information technology -increasingly both academic and recreational materials are being made available

in electronic formats, either in addition to or instead of print. The costs ofcreating, storing, and disseminating electronic information have decreased,and the technology to support distribution and access is widespread. Risingacquisition and subscription fees have forced libraries to seek other ways tomake information available and content aggregators and e-book publishersare providing the means. Most significantly, digital libraries support serviceimprovement. Information search and navigation across electronic informationresources is much faster, with enriched points of access, and alternative methodsfor browsing and exploration. The resources themselves can be segmented,rearranged, annotated, and enhanced in ways not possible before, and canbe directly integrated with desktop productivity tools for local analysis andprocessing. A digital environment enables cross-community interactivityand collaboration, regardless of physical location. Also, digitization presentsopportunities for long-term preservation of bodies of knowledge, if not of theoriginal carriers of that knowledge.

Digital Library System Have Identified the Following Purposes of a DigitalLibrary System :

To expedite the systematic development of the means to collect , store, andorganize information and knowledge in digital form, and of digital librarycollections

To promote the economical and efficient delivery of information to all sectors ofsociety

To encourage cooperative efforts which coverage the considerable investment

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research resources, computing and communications network

To strengthen communication and collaboration between and among theresearch business government and educational communities

To take an important role in the generation and dissemination of knowledge in

area of strategic importance to the society:

To contribute to the life long learning opportunities and education in ourcountry.

Digital libraries are constructed for community of user in which individuals andgroups interact with each other, use data information and knowledge, resourcesand systems. In this sense they are extension enhancement, and integrationof a variety of information institutions as physical places where resourcesare selected, collected, organized, preserved and accessed in support of usercommunity.

The Structure of Digital Libraries Fall in Two Categories

a) Preservation of Born Digital Literature

b) Preservation of Made or prepared Digital Literature.

In first category the Digital Literature is itself published in digital versions and theLibrary has to download it and keep in folders with the use of suitable softwarelike GSDL (Greenstone Digital Library Software by GSDL, New Zealand) for theusers.

In second category the Digital Literature is prepared in the Library. The material

is selected by judging the needs of the library users and then it is digitizedwith the help of the necessary infrastructure like Scanners etc. It is convertedinto familiar formats, Meta tags are assigned and metadata is created of suchliterature as the manual Library catalogues and then made available to the userselectronically. In this view the Jayakar Library of The University of Pune has setbest example in digitizing the rare book material.

Digital Library is a storage media of the electronic resources as on-line and off-line. On line resources cover the information downloaded from the Internet. Thisinformation is current, it can be stored in files and folders for the constant use.

Off- line resources are the CD ROMs and Floppies which can be kept for theready reference of the user. The Project Reports or Seminar Reports can besubmitted by the students on the CDs so that in can be easier to store and usethe data.Components of Digital Library

A fully developed digital library environment involves the following elements:

1. Initial conversion of content from physical to digital form.

2. The extraction or creation of metadata or indexing information describingthe Content to facilitate searching and discovery, as well as administrativeand Structural metadata to assist in object viewing, management andpreservation.

3. Storage of digital content and metadata in an appropriate multimediarepository. The repository will include rights management capabilities toenforce intellectual Property rights, if required. E-commerce functionality

may also be present if needed to handle accounting and billing.

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4. Client services for the browser, including repository querying and workflow.

5. Content delivery via file transfer or streaming media.

6. Patron access through a browser or dedicated client.

7. A private or public network4.

Digital Libraries InitiativesThere are number of places where appropriate research, development is beingdone .Few initial attempts are mentioned below:

University of California, Berkely (http://elib.cs.berkely.edu)

Uni. Of California, Santa Barbara. The Alexandria Project (maps) http://allexandria.sdc.ucsb.edu/index.htm)

Carnegie Mellon University. Informedia (video)(http://

www.informedia.cs.cmu.edu)

University of Illinois, Urbana Champaign

http://dil.grainger.uic.edu/idli/idli.htm/

University of Michigan. Intelligent Agent for information Location(http;//www.si.umich.edu/UMDL

Standford University Infobusina (http://www.dliglib.standford.edu)

Indian Digital Library Initiatives

Vidyanidhi (Indian Digital Library of Electronic theses)

Down Memory Lane National Library of India, Calcutta(digitization of rare andbrittle document on compact disks)

Million Book ProjectConclusionDigital libraries are need to span between print and digital materials and thatthe central issue was to promote a coherent view of a very large collection ofinformation. Really the objective is to develop information systems providingaccess to a coherent collection of material. more and more of which will bein digital format as time goes on, and to fully exploit the opportunities thatare offered by the materials that are in digital formats. Additionally, thecomprehensiveness and library system can be strengthened by the ability to

integrate materials in digital formats that have not been well represented,easy to access, or effectively usable in traditional library collections ,such asmultimedia, geospatial data, or numerical datasets. There is in reality, a verystrong continuity between traditional library roles and missions and the objectivesof a digital library system.