Chowdhury, G.G.; Chowdhury, S.: Introduction to digital libraries (2003)
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- Footnote
- Rez. in: JASIST 55(2004) no.2, S.178-179 (M.-Y. Kan): "In their latest book, Chowdhury and Chowdhury have written an introductory text an digital libraries, primarily targeting "students researching digital libraries as part of information and library science, as well as computer science, courses" (p. xiv). It is an ambitious work that surveys many of the broad topics in digital libraries (DL) while highlighting completed and ongoing DL research in many parts of the world. With the revamping of Library and Information Science (LIS) Curriculums to focus an information technology, many LIS schools are now teaching DL topics either as an independent course or as part of an existing one. Instructors of these courses have in many cases used supplementary texts and compeed readers from journals and conference materials, possibly because they feel that a suitable textbook has yet to be written. A solid, principal textbook for digital libraries is sorely needed to provide a critical, evaluative synthesis of DL literature. It is with this in mind that I believe Introduction to Digital Libraries was written. An introductory text an any Cross-disciplinary topic is bound to have conflicting limitations and expectations from its adherents who come from different backgrounds. This is the rase in the development of DL Curriculum, in which both LIS and computer science schools are actively involved. Compiling a useful secondary source in such Cross-disciplinary areas is challenging; it requires that jargon from each contributing field be carefully explained and respected, while providing thought-provoking material to broaden student perspectives. In my view, the book's breadth certainly encompasses the whole of what an introduction to DL needs, but it is hampered by a lack of focus from catering to such disparate needs. For example, LIS students will need to know which key aspects differentiate digital library metadata from traditional metadata while computer science students will need to learn the basics of vector spare and probabilistic information retrieval. However, the text does not give enough detail an either subject and thus even introductory students will need to go beyond the book and consult primary sources. In this respect, the book's 307 pages of content are too short to do justice to such a broad field of study.
This book covers all of the primary areas in the DL Curriculum as suggested by T. Saracevic and M. Dalbello's (2001) and A. Spink and C. Cool's (1999) D-Lib articles an DL education. In fact, the book's coverage is quite broad; it includes a Superset of recommended topics, offering a chapter an professional issues (recommended in Spink and Cool) as well as three chapters devoted to DL research. The book comes with a comprehensive list of references and an index, allowing readers to easily locate a specific topic or research project of interest. Each chapter also begins with a short outline of the chapter. As an additional plus, the book is quite heavily Cross-referenced, allowing easy navigation across topics. The only drawback with regard to supplementary materials is that it Lacks a glossary that world be a helpful reference to students needing a reference guide to DL terminology. The book's organization is well thought out and each chapter stands independently of the others, facilitating instruction by parts. While not officially delineated into three parts, the book's fifteen chapters are logically organized as such. Chapters 2 and 3 form the first part, which surveys various DLs and DL research initiatives. The second and core part of the book examines the workings of a DL along various dimensions, from its design to its eventual implementation and deployment. The third part brings together extended topics that relate to a deployed DL: its preservation, evaluation, and relationship to the larger social content. Chapter 1 defines digital libraries and discusses the scope of the materials covered in the book. The authors posit that the meaning of digital library is best explained by its sample characteristics rather than by definition, noting that it has largely been shaped by the melding of the research and information professions. This reveals two primary facets of the DL: an "emphasis an digital content" coming from an engineering and computer science perspective as well as an "emphasis an services" coming from library and information professionals (pp. 4-5). The book's organization mirrors this dichotomy, focusing an the core aspects of content in the earlier chapters and retuming to the service perspective in later chapters.
Another weakness of the book is its favoritism towards the authors' own works. To a large extent, this bias is natural as the authors know their own works best. However, in an introductory text, it is critical to reference the most appropriate source and give a balanced view of the field. In this respect, 1 feel the book could be more objective in its selection of references and research projects. Introduction to Digital Libraries is definitely a book written for a purpose. LIS undergraduates and "practicing professionals who need to know about recent developments in the field of digital libraries" (p. xiv) will find this book a fine introduction, as it is clearly written and accessible to laymen, giving explanations without delving into terminology and math. As it surveys a large number of projects, it is also an ideal starting point for students to pick and investigate particular DL research projects. However, graduate LIS students who already have a solid understanding of library fundamentals as well as Computer science students may find this volume lacking in details. Alternative texts such as Lesk (1999) and Arms (2000) are possibly more suitable for those who need to investigate topics in depth. For the experienced practitioner or researcher delving into the DL field for the first time, the recent 2002 ARIST chapter by Fox and Urs may also be a suitable alternative. In their introduction, the authors ask, "What are digital libraries? How do they differ from online databases and search services? Will they replace print libraries? What impact will they have an people and the society?" (p. 3). To answer these questions, Chowdhury and Chowdhury offer a multitude of case studies to let the audience draw their own conclusions. To this end, it is my opinion that Introduction to Digital Libraries serves a useful purpose as a supplemental text in the digital library Curriculum but misses the mark of being an authoritative textbook."
