Spring Break
A&M to join Texas Digital Library
By: Chad Richards
Issue date: 7/27/05 Section: News
Texas A&M will join four other Texas universities in order to provide researchers, students and the general population of the state of Texas with a new academic resource - the Texas Digital Library (TDL).
A&M, along with the University of Texas, Texas Tech University, the University of Houston and Rice University will merge online resources to form an electronic library.
Fred Heath, the vice provost of the University of Texas libraries and head of the project, said the joint effort will substantially lower library costs, specifically costs in licensing, staff and facilities.
"I think that the main beneficiaries of the TDL will be the people of Texas," Heath said. "For the people of Texas, a large part of the libraries' budget is inaccessible to them. What this allows us to do is to create kind of a public domain."
Texas A&M library system public relations officer Charlene Clark said she is looking forward to the partnership, which would make exclusive A&M publications available to anyone interested in researching through the TDL.
"Resources that were not readily available are now very accessible," Clark said. "At Texas A&M, what we'll probably do is include dissertations, faculty publications and theses."
Clark said the system will ensure an effective use of the best intellectual talent provided by the five universities. The resources can be used by professionals in technical fields of engineering or mathematics, or provide a research location for the elementary school to high school communities.
Joe Lukefahr, a junior computer science major, said there is a large benefit to having a joint library.
"Any library with more resources would be more helpful, I'd think, and if I can get that completely online, that'd be even better," he said.
The database will also be a valuable resource for employers, said Don Dyal, dean of libraries at Texas Tech University.
"We have music majors who are getting their Ph.D. in symphonic conducting," Dyal said. "If you do a Ph.D. and it's a performance piece, well, that doesn't fit inside a book very well. With this people could get as creative as they'd like. Their imagination is the only limit."
Dyal said that the same capabilities will help any thesis that requires presentation, including computer models for architects, software for computer engineers and models for mathematicians.
Early ideas for the program began three years ago, Heath said, but there have been no concrete decisions until recently. Dyal said serious considerations began at an Association of Research Librarians meeting last year, when the five directors of the libraries met again for a brainstorming session.
"We met in February and kind of kicked the idea around, and all of us agreed that this could happen," Dyal said.
The TDL will be launched within the year, but no set date has been determined.
A&M, along with the University of Texas, Texas Tech University, the University of Houston and Rice University will merge online resources to form an electronic library.
Fred Heath, the vice provost of the University of Texas libraries and head of the project, said the joint effort will substantially lower library costs, specifically costs in licensing, staff and facilities.
"I think that the main beneficiaries of the TDL will be the people of Texas," Heath said. "For the people of Texas, a large part of the libraries' budget is inaccessible to them. What this allows us to do is to create kind of a public domain."
Texas A&M library system public relations officer Charlene Clark said she is looking forward to the partnership, which would make exclusive A&M publications available to anyone interested in researching through the TDL.
"Resources that were not readily available are now very accessible," Clark said. "At Texas A&M, what we'll probably do is include dissertations, faculty publications and theses."
Clark said the system will ensure an effective use of the best intellectual talent provided by the five universities. The resources can be used by professionals in technical fields of engineering or mathematics, or provide a research location for the elementary school to high school communities.
Joe Lukefahr, a junior computer science major, said there is a large benefit to having a joint library.
"Any library with more resources would be more helpful, I'd think, and if I can get that completely online, that'd be even better," he said.
The database will also be a valuable resource for employers, said Don Dyal, dean of libraries at Texas Tech University.
"We have music majors who are getting their Ph.D. in symphonic conducting," Dyal said. "If you do a Ph.D. and it's a performance piece, well, that doesn't fit inside a book very well. With this people could get as creative as they'd like. Their imagination is the only limit."
Dyal said that the same capabilities will help any thesis that requires presentation, including computer models for architects, software for computer engineers and models for mathematicians.
Early ideas for the program began three years ago, Heath said, but there have been no concrete decisions until recently. Dyal said serious considerations began at an Association of Research Librarians meeting last year, when the five directors of the libraries met again for a brainstorming session.
"We met in February and kind of kicked the idea around, and all of us agreed that this could happen," Dyal said.
The TDL will be launched within the year, but no set date has been determined.
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