The Northeast Massachusetts Digital Library (NMDL) was launched in 2004 to provide a repository for images held by NMRLS' member libraries.
NMRLS also supports digitization efforts of members by hosting a digital scanning lab, providing continuing education, and offering advisory services. Please contact Scott Kehoe scott@nmrls.org for further information about these services.
NMDL has grown from a pilot project started in 2002 with 100 digital objects to over 4,000 digital objects from 17 member libraries. We are grateful for multi-year grant funding from the Essex National Heritage Commission and a two-year LSTA Grant from the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners (MBLC) which made the digital library possible. The site hosts about 4,000 visitors per month.
Images of *ten institutions are housed and indexed in a searchable database hosted by ContentDM software on our site: www.nmrls.org/nmdl/index.shtml
**Seven institutions participated in our pilot project, Essex County Heritage Online Exhibits: www.nmrls.org/enha/index.shtml
- Beverly High School *
- Essex Agricultural & Technical High School, Danvers *
- Haverhill Public Library **
- Ipswich Public Library *
- Lawrence Public Library *
- Lowell National Historic Park *
- Lynn Public Library *
- Manchester Historical Society **
- Nevins Memorial Library, Methuen **
- Manchester-by-the-Sea Public Library *
- Manchester Historical Society**
- Peabody Institute Library, Danvers **
- Peabody Institute Library, Peabody *
- Saugus Public Library *
- Stephen Phillips Memorial Trust House, Salem *
- Stevens Memorial Library, North Andover **
- Topsfield Town Clerk's Office **
NMRLS Digital Library Committee (www.nmrls.org/about/committee.shtml#dig) has approved digitization standards and best practices.
ContentDM is remotely hosted software purchased through OCLC that allows NMDL users to search, browse, and display digital images and metadata in the collections. NMRLS staff and contractors upload metadata in the Dublin Core format and images (usually JPEG) from remote locations for inclusions in the system. The system is similar to an online catalog for digital objects with special features to facilitate upload and maintenance by participating libraries. It also allows patrons to save and create their own web page of "favorite" images.
Dublin Core is a standard for metadata, or indexing, adopted by NMRLS for use in the NMDL. This standard employs natural language and is very much like a simplified MARC cataloging record for a digital image.
OAI (Open Archives Initiative) Harvesting Protocol is a current standard that allows simultaneous searching of index information from multiple digital repositories. The metadata (indexing information) in the NMDL is searchable via OAIster, one of the most popular OAI sites: oaister.umdl.umich.edu/o/oaister/ which hosts metadata for over 6 million digital objects from over 575 institutions.
Digital Commonwealth - Massachusetts' Statewide Digital Library - Visit www.digitalcommonwealth.org for the latest news on this project. See related article at http://www.nmrls.org/news/feb06/digcomm.shtml.
