A digital library is a library in which collections are stored in digital formats (as opposed to print, microform, or other media) and accessible by computers. The digital content may be stored locally, or accessed remotely via computer networks. A digital library is a type of information retrieval system.
The DELOS Digital Library Reference Model defines a digital library as:
An organization, which might be virtual, that comprehensively collects, manages and preserves for the long term rich digital content, and offers to its user communities specialized functionality on that content, of measurable quality and according to codified policies.
A distinction is often made between content that was created in a digital format, known as born-digital, and information that has been converted from a physical medium, e.g., paper, by digitizing. The term hybrid library is sometimes used for libraries that have both physical collections and digital collections. For example, American Memory is a digital library within the Library of Congress. Some important digital libraries also serve as long term archives, for example, the ePrint arXiv, and the Internet Archive.
Many academic libraries are actively involved in building institutional repositories of the institution’s books, papers, theses, and other works which can be digitized or were ‘born digital’. Many of these repositories are made available to the general public with few restrictions, in accordance with the goals of open access, in contrast to the publication of research in commercial journals, where the publishers often limit access rights. Institutional, truly free, and corporate repositories are sometimes referred to as digital libraries.
REFERENCES:
- Digital library (January22, 2010) from Wikipedia: The free Encyclopedia. Retrieved January 28, 2010: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digital_libraries
- Biblioteca digital (January 24, 2010) from Wikipedia: The free Encyclopedia. Retrieved January 28, 2010: http://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biblioteca_digital
- The european library (2005-2009) from The european library. Retrieved January 28, 2010: http://search.theeuropeanlibrary.org/portal/en/index.html
Posted in Edición digital, littera Tagged: bibliotecas digitales, digital libraries 
