The Concise Oxford Dictionary gives the meaning of the word "library" as ‘a room or building containing books for reading and reference.’ When the word library is uttered, one thinks of a dark room with high racks all around, big wooden tables, cold chairs, pin drop silence, a bespectacled person who is engrossed in some registers and cards, and the last day of returning the book.
Technology has helped libraries to break free from this dark and formal image. A number of educational, research institutions and libraries are opting for having Electronic Libraries. These are also known as Digital Libraries. An Electronic Library or a Digital Library is a library in which content is stored in a digital form. Be it journals, magazines, books, reports, newspapers all are stored in a digital format. All the resources are in a machine readable format. A library where both the traditional as well as the digital form is being used simultaneously is known as a Hybrid Library.
A number of digital libraries allow free access and some of them charge a subscription fee from the member like any regular library.Going in for the digital form has its own advantages; some of them are:
24 x 7 Availability: Digital Libraries allow access 24 x 7. There is no binding regarding access timing and date. It is up to the convenience of the reader when he or she wants to access the reading material. Digital Material can be accessed from any place from one’s room, dormitory, and the coffee shop. One does not need to go to the library physically for accessing reading material.
Access by Multiple Readers: One does not really need to check whether the copy of the reading material is available or not. Multiple readers can access the reading material at the same time. One does not need to wait for the reading material to be returned by the earlier user.
Multi-Sourcing: Digital Libraries can collaborate to provide a wide range of reading material to its readers. This makes the system cost effective both for the libraries as well as the users. One does not need to be a member of multiple libraries to access a greater amount of reading material. For the libraries, it proves cheaper to share the resources rather than purchase.
Faster and Convenient Access: Searching for the relevant information becomes faster and easier as the resource is in a digital form. With user friendly interfaces, the need to bend over issue cards, registers and the book itself is not required.
Conservation of Delicate Reading Material: Delicate, very old reading material can be easily preserved and conserved by digitizing the them. It can save such reading material from damage occurring due to repetitive use and handling.
Space Saving: Digital Libraries not only prove cost effective in the long run, but also help to save a lot of physical space. A library does not need very large reading areas and storage space.
Before an institution can opt for digital libraries it would need to work on a number of considerations: The initial cost of technology, having an alternate system in case of a technical problem, access and awareness regarding the same in developing countries, copy right laws, and subscription policies etc.