Strategic priority 2 - Build the digital research environment
We have the vision and the acknowledged expertise to play a leading role in defining and creating with others the UK’s electronic research infrastructure. We’ve established the critical national and international partnerships we need, and are working to address the complex challenges inherent in actively managing digital information in the long term. Guaranteed access to digital material in the long term is vital for the successful future of UK research programmes. Digital resources also present new opportunities for people to undertake research for personal enrichment and self-development, and allow disabled people to engage with previously inaccessible sources.
Key area - Develop the National Digital Library as a key part of the UK's research e-infrastructure
Actions and benefits
- Pioneer development of the Digital Library to provide sophisticated storage, preservation and access to the nation’s digital content.
- The Digital Library will initially ingest material that is born digital such as websites and e-journals that have been collected as part of our voluntary deposit programme.
- The Digital Library will hold the e-versions of all our collection items that have been digitised.
- The Digital Library will be the central element of our approach to digital collection management.
An illustration from our Hans Christian Andersen exhibition - also one of 14,000 pictures available from our digital image service. |
Key area - Work with others to shape the national research e-infrastructure
Actions and benefits
- Collaborate across the research community to guarantee that both text-based and data-based research outputs are preserved and available for the researchers of tomorrow.
- Work with partners developing digital information repositories (both subject-based and institution-based) to ensure these are robust and cross-searchable within a framework of common standards.
- In partnership with JISC, create Virtual Research Environments and provide
information services to facilitate the research process using these new tools. - Link the content of our collections to external digital resources to support the
research process.
Key area - Continue our innovative digitisation programmes
Actions and benefits
- Further increase the significant range of collection material available for desktop delivery to users by on-demand digitisation.
- Work with partners on bulk digitisation of significant collections that open up new possibilities for investigation and enrich research and learning opportunities.
- Digitise a substantial proportion of our early British newspaper collection so that this primary resource is easily accessible and usable. This will build on our pioneering work with JISC which will give searchable online access to two million sheets of our 19th century newspaper collection by September 2006.
- Digitise significant sections of our Sound Archive, following on from the digitisation of over 3,000 hours of sound as part of a JISC-supported programme to improve access to sound for researchers, and our work with DfES to give schools access to interpreted online sound resources.
- Provide interpretation of digitised content suitable for diverse audiences, making use of European policy and funding frameworks.
The cross-disciplinary inventiveness of a Renaissance master: Leonardo's notebook is online for all to explore.
