Summaries and Customer Reviews are supplied by Amazon.com
Summary:
This fully revised and updated second edition of Understanding Digital Libraries focuses on the challenges faced by both librarians and computer scientists in a field that has been dramatically altered by the growth of the Web.
At every turn, the goal is practical: to show you how things you might need to do are already being done, or how they can be done. The first part of the book is devoted to technology and examines issues such as varying media requirements, indexing and classification, networks and distribution, and presentation. The second part of the book is concerned with the human contexts in which digital libraries function. Here you'll find specific and useful information on usability, preservation, scientific applications, and thorny legal and economic questions.
. Useful for digital library projects in all kinds of settings, including commercial and community ventures, museums, research institutions, and schools. . Covers the entire spectrum of media, including text, all kinds of images, audio, and video. . Provides practical advice on achieving the best of what is possible while avoiding common pitfalls. . Filled with case studies and references to valuable outside resources.
Customer Reviews:
Average Customer Rating:
Readable primer for digital libraries
Customer Rating:
In Understanding Digital Libraries, Michael Lesk explains a new method of distribution and preservation in a dry, informative, even-handed and almost academic fashion. His book, while unlikely to capture the imagination of the average layperson, is a reasonably successful textbook, which might be of interest to students and professionals alike.
If I had to lobby a complaint against the book it would be that the book does not always delve deep enough into its topics. The book is an excellent primer, but I often felt that I had only a cursory idea of the subjects it explained rather than then a genuine understanding. For example after reading Understanding Digital Libraries' chapter on knowledge representation schemes, I have a basic of idea of XML's function in representing data on the web; however, I wouldn't be able to use it myself.
Of course, this deficiency in the book is merely a result of its purpose, not a fault in execution. As an introductory text, it is perfectly functional. However, for someone looking to work with digital libraries in the field it will almost certainly need to be supplemented by other books.
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