Building the digital library on solid research foundations

The digital library is a socio-technical concept of great significance. It redefines the relationships between information providers and intermediaries and, potentially, transforms the way that services are delivered to users. This article, based on a British Library Research & Innovation Centre funded study, reviews current themes and directions in digital library research and scholarship. It locates the digital library in a simple work-oriented framework emphasising its social as well as its systems and informational dimensions. The article highlights differences in understanding of the digital library construct between the library and computer science communities and identifies some critical areas for further research.