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Begin forwarded message: > From: Kenny Whitebloom <[email protected]> > Date: April 18, 2013, 12:25:57 PM EDT > To: Berkman Friends <[email protected]> > Subject: [berkmanfriends] Digital Public Library of America (DPLA) Launches > Today > > Digital Public Library of America (DPLA) Launches Today > > April 18, 2013 > > The Digital Public Library of America (DPLA) launched a beta of its discovery > portal and open platform today. The portal delivers millions of materials > found in American archives, libraries, museums, and cultural heritage > institutions to students, teachers, scholars, and the public. Far more than a > search engine, the portal provides innovative ways to search and scan through > its united collection of distributed resources. Special features include a > dynamic map, a timeline that allow users to visually browse by year or > decade, and an app library that provides access to applications and tools > created by external developers using DPLA’s open data. > > “The wonder and joy of entering an expansive library for the first time is > truly a special feeling. We are delighted to be able to share this unified, > open collection with Americans and the world, and can’t wait to see what > people discover, and what new applications and knowledge will be created,” > said Dan Cohen, Executive Director of the DPLA. > > "Many decades in the visioning, two and a half years in the planning, > with a small steering committee and an incubation hub at the helm, and > featuring dozens of great libraries, universities and archives involved in > hundreds of meetings, workshops, plenary meetings, and hackathons, attracting > thousands of volunteers backed by millions of foundation and government > dollars, today the Digital Public Library of America goes live! It's a great > day for education and progress, as if the Ancient Library of Alexandria had > met the modern World Wide Web and digitized America for the benefit of all," > said Doron Weber, Vice Chair of the DPLA Steering Committee and Vice > President, Programs at the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, a major, active funder > of the project. > > The DPLA portal is powered by a rich repository of information, known as the > DPLA platform, which enables new and transformative uses of America’s > digitized cultural heritage. With an application programming interface (API) > and maximally open data, the DPLA can be used by software developers, > researchers, and others to create novel environments for learning, tools for > discovery, and engaging apps. The DPLA App Library (dp.la/apps) features an > initial slate of applications built on top of the platform; developers and > hobbyists of all skill levels are freely able to make use of the data > provided via the platform. > > "The DPLA launches virtually today, a symbol of what people can accomplish > through collaboration in a networked era," said John Palfrey, President of > the Board of Directors of the DPLA. "The most exciting idea is that we > cannot begin to imagine the extraordinary things that librarians and their > many partners can accomplish with this open platform and such extraordinarily > rich materials, from so many institutions large and small, together and at > the ready. We will create new knowledge together and make accessible, free > to all, information that people need in order to thrive in a democracy." > > “The DPLA’s goal is to bring the entire nation’s rich cultural > collections off the shelves and into the innovative environment of the > Internet for people to discover, download, remix, reuse and build on in ways > we haven’t yet begun to imagine,” said Maura Marx, Director of the DPLA > Secretariat. “Regular users can search in the traditional way using the > portal, and developers and innovators can build on big chunks of code and > content using the platform—we’re creating access, not controlling it.” > > Led by Cohen, the DPLA aims to expand the realm of openly available > materials, and make those riches more easily discovered and more widely > usable and used. To date, the DPLA has partnered with six state and regional > digital libraries and an equal number of large cultural heritage > institutions— including the National Archives and Records Administration > (NARA), the Smithsonian Institution, the New York Public Library, and Harvard > University—to provide access to millions of unique digital objects. > > “Among the 2.4 million records available at launch, you will find gems that > include daguerreotypes of former Presidents George Washington and Abraham > Lincoln, images of women marching for the vote in Kentucky, news film clips > of the Freedom Riders during the Civil Rights movement, The Book of Hours, an > illuminated manuscript from 1514, Notes on the State of Virginia, written by > Thomas Jefferson, and paintings by Winslow Homer,” said Emily Gore, DPLA > Director for Content. > > With its content partners, the DPLA has developed a number of diverse virtual > exhibitions (dp.la/exhibitions) that tell the stories of people, places, and > historical events both here in the US and abroad; all are available freely > via the portal. A History of Survivance: 19th c. Upper Midwest Native > American Resources in the DPLA, developed by the Minnesota Digital Library, > tells the story of extraordinary cultural disruption, change and continuity > in Minnesota and the surrounding areas during the 19th century through > objects of both Native and non-Native origin. Other exhibitions include > Boston Sports Temples, developed by Digital Commonwealth (Massachusetts), > which celebrates the rich histories of Boston’s professional stadiums and > arenas; and This Land Is Your Land: Parks and Public Spaces, an exploration > of the history, impact, and significance of our national parks and protected > areas curated by the South Carolina Digital Library. > > “The project unleashes access to a volume and variety of historical and > cultural assets through a dynamic, digitized information platform,” said > Jorge Martinez, Vice President and Chief Technology Officer at the Knight > Foundation. “It offers an invaluable opportunity to reanimate this > information and further strengthen the roles of libraries as centers for > engagement—bringing communities together, fostering deeper understanding and > connecting people with traditional culture—by leveraging the power of new > technology.” > > The DPLA began in October 2010 with a small meeting of representatives from > foundations, research institutions, cultural organizations, government, and > libraries who came together to discuss best approaches to building a national > digital library. In 2011, the Berkman Center for Internet & Society at > Harvard University established, with the support of Alfred P. Sloan > Foundation, a two-year planning initiative to guide the conceptualization, > planning, and development of the DPLA. > > Today’s launch is, in large part, the culmination of that effort, marking the > transition from a two-year planning initiative towards a fully realized, > standalone 501(c)3 non-profit organization that will continue to make the > riches of America’s libraries, archives, and museums freely available to the > world. > > A series of festivities to celebrate the launch, scheduled to occur at the > Boston Public Library today and tomorrow, were postponed until the fall in > the wake of the April 15 Boston Marathon tragedy, which occurred near the > storied public library. > > “I see the building of a new library as one of the greatest examples of what > humans can do together to extend the light against the darkness,” said Dan > Cohen, reflecting on the recent events in a letter to the DPLA community. “In > due time, we will let that light shine through.” > > About the Digital Public Library of America > The Digital Public Library of America (DPLA) brings together the riches of > America’s libraries, archives, and museums, and makes them freely available > to the world. It strives to contain the full breadth of human expression, > from the written word, to works of art and culture, to records of America’s > heritage, to the efforts and data of science. The DPLA aims to expand this > crucial realm of openly available materials, and make those riches more > easily discovered and more widely usable and used. > > The DPLA is supported by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, the Arcadia Fund, > the Institute of Museum and Library Services, the John S. and James L. Knight > Foundation, and the National Endowment for the Humanities. > > More information is online at http://dp.la. > ---------- > You are subscribed to the BerkmanFriends discussion list. > > Mailing list options: http://cyber.law.harvard.edu/lists/info/berkmanfriends > Mailing list members: http://cyber.law.harvard.edu/lists/review/berkmanfriends > > Reminder: emails sent through this list are considered on-record unless > otherwise noted. > >
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