Defining
a Digitization Strategy for The Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript
Library
The Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library has been at the forefront of digitization efforts at Yale University for the past five years. Our efforts include a joint development project with IBM using their Digital Library Collection Treasury product, participation in the Imaging America project using Luna Imaging’s Insight software, and development of our own homegrown Digital Library software. We have been successful at providing web-based access to over 18,000 images in our Photonegatives database, and more than 10,000 images in our Marinetti Libroni database.
Through these experiences we have lost much of our naiveté regarding the decisions upon which past efforts have been based. Having matured in our understanding of the necessary components for a successful digitization effort we recognize the importance of establishing an institutional perspective which can be relied upon to inform and guide future digitization efforts.
In support of that goal the Beinecke formed a Digitization Working Group. The group’s charge is ambitious and can be characterized as follows:
Over the last months the group has successfully addressed the first two charges: institutional goals and guidelines.
It is essential for any institution desiring
to implement a program of digitization that it be able to identify and explain
the reasons for considering and undertaking such an effort. The Beinecke Rare
Book and Manuscript Library has recognized, for itself, the following rationale:
Like any project undertaken at the Beinecke, digitization of Beinecke material should conform to the basic notion that such an effort supports the core mission of Yale University, namely teaching.
The results of digitization should enhance and support research in a given area.
Many objects which the Beinecke hosts are vulnerable to damage for a variety of reasons. Digitization may be the only way to provide continued study of material while conserving and preserving it at the same time.
The Beinecke’s first Digital Library project grew out of an inventory of photonegatives which were accumulated largely as a result of patron requests for reprints. The Library expects patron requests to play an important and continuing role in digitization efforts here.
The Beinecke is committed to extending learning and research beyond the geographical boundaries of the University. Where appropriate, digitization of materials will play a role in support of that commitment.
Selection and Prioritization: Categories, Content and
Guidelines
Having defined overall institutional goals,
the Beinecke next sought to provide a set of guidelines which would inform the
selection and prioritization of materials appropriate for digitization. We
recognized two essential categories of material, each with its own body of
content and rationale for selection/prioritization as
follows:
Category:
Materials and projects identified by curators, with
additional input from fellows, faculty, staff and scholars.
In the past these have included (but have not been limited to):
class and course support, exhibitions, scholarly and non-scholarly research support, and materials needed for publications.
Priorities for
digitization will be established by the Director after consultation with BMG and
consideration of any processing issues.
Content: Focus on visual and audio materials, but not to the exclusion of opportunities to enhance scholarship through the digitization of other material.
Guidelines: Focus on materials of the following nature:
Category: Public Services Requests.
Content: Various, defined by the requests themselves with advice and input from the curatorial staff.
Guidelines: Prioritize scanning efforts as follows:
Remaining Issues
Two significant areas remain to be dealt with from the original charge of the Digitization Working Group:
The size of a digital image file depends on the size of the original and the
resolution of capture (number of pixels per inch in both height and width that are
sampled from the original to create the digital image), the number of channels
(typically 3: Red, Green, and Blue:"RGB"), and the bit depth (the number of data
bits used to store the image data for one pixel).