Practical Digital Libraries: Books, Bytes, and Bucks (The Morgan Kaufmann Series in Multimedia Information and Systems) [Hardcover]

Michael Lesk (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 1558604596 | ISBN-13: 978-1558604599 | Publication Date: July 15, 1997 | Edition: 1

A digital library is not merely a collection of electronic information. It is an organized and digitized system of data that can serve as a rich resource for its user community. This authoritative and accessible guide for librarians and computer scientists explores the technologies behind digital libraries, the choices to be made in building them, and the economic and policy structures that affect them.

The most comprehensive book on the subject, Practical Digital Libraries
* offers the most wide-ranging overview of digital libraries currently available
* analyzes economic and intellectual issues in the emerging digital environment
* shows how text, images, audio, and video can be represented, distributed, used, and collected as forms of knowledge

Editorial Reviews

Review

"While others speculate on the organizational dilemmas facing libraries and universities in a digital information environment or argue the relative philosophical merits of print versus digital media, Lesk has constructed an on-the-ground picture of the various working components of the digital environment. Viewed as a whole and with an engineering sense of composition, his picture is remarkable--almost astonishing--because it reveals how advanced the digital environment has truly become."
—Donald J. Waters, Associate University Librarian, Yale University

From the Back Cover

"While others speculate on the organizational dilemmas facing libraries and
universities in a digital information environment or argue the relative philosophical merits of print versus digital media, Lesk has constructed an on-the-ground picture of the various working components of the digital
environment. Viewed as a whole and with an engineering sense of composition, his picture is remarkable--almost astonishing--because it reveals how advanced the digital environment has truly become."

--Donald J. Waters

Associate University Librarian, Yale University

A digital library is not merely a collection of electronic information. It is an organized and digitized system of data that can serve as a rich resource for its user community. This authoritative and accessible guide for librarians and computer scientists explores the technologies behind digital libraries, the choices to be made in building them, and the economic and policy structures that affect them.

The most comprehensive book on the subject, Practical Digital Libraries

• offers the most wide-ranging overview of digital libraries currently available
  
• analyzes economic and intellectual issues in the emerging digital environment
  
• shows how text, images, audio, and video can be represented, distributed, used, and collected as forms of knowledge

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 297 pages
• Publisher: Morgan Kaufmann; 1 edition (July 15, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1558604596
• ISBN-13: 978-1558604599
• Product Dimensions: 9.6 x 7.7 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.7 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,717,154 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A really good book, but quite technical, July 24, 2000

By 

UEllis - See all my reviews

This review is from: Practical Digital Libraries: Books, Bytes, and Bucks (The Morgan Kaufmann Series in Multimedia Information and Systems) (Hardcover)

This is a very informative, well-balanced book on digital libraries. Lesk considers both the pros and cons of electronic versus print-only libraries, and provides detailed descriptions of how to digitize and distribute a variety of content - text, images, audio, video, etc. He also gives historical and philosophical background on issues concerning digital libraries. The only problem I had was that some parts were too technical for me to understand. This may be because I'm just starting out in the field, and the book may be more accessible to those with more experience. However, I think the addition of a glossary to the book would help quite a bit. Overall, I found the book educational and enjoyable, and I recommend it highly.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Excellent overview - but technical, December 11, 2000

By 

Robert Aaron (Clark Atlanta Univ., Atlanta, GA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Practical Digital Libraries: Books, Bytes, and Bucks (The Morgan Kaufmann Series in Multimedia Information and Systems) (Hardcover)

This book is one of the most thorough discussions on the ins and outs of digital libraries I've ever seen. Lesk knows his stuff, both on the library - classification - document side and on the computer - technology side. Unfortunately, the reader also needs to be conversant with both sides, especially the technical. I feel the book is sometimes too heavily tilted toward the engineering/technology side. Kudos to Lesk, however, for his discussions of the economics of information, intellectual property, and international activities.