Building Digital Library Using Koha and DSpace: Feasibility study

Muhammad Omar Faruk1&Amranul Haque2

Abstract: Invention of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) is changing the world
in geometric speed. To cope with rapidly changing technological advancement is prime challenge
of Library and Knowledge workers. Digital Library is the key challenges in recent years
throughout the world especially in developing countries like Bangladesh. Developing countries
basically depends on open source library software. Koha and DSpace is most widely used
software of the world. This paper will uncover the feasibility of this software in developing
countries with its features, installation requirements and usefulness. This paper will help
researcher to implement these software in their institution and further study.

Keywords: Digital Library, Koha, DSpace, Feasibility, Electronic Library

Introduction
An electronic library (colloquially referred to as a digital library) is a library in which collections are stored
in electronic media formats (as opposed to print, microform, or other media) and accessible via computers.
The electronic content may be stored locally, or accessed remotely via computer networks. An electronic
library is a type of information retrieval system. In the context of the DELOS, a Network of Excellence on
Digital Libraries, and DL.org, a Coordination Action on Digital Library Interoperability, Best Practices and
Modeling Foundations, Digital Library researchers and practitioners and software developer produced a
Digital Library Reference Model which defines a digital library as: "A potentially virtual organization, that
comprehensively collects, manages and preserves for the long depth of time rich digital content, and offers
to its targeted user communities specialized functionality on that content, of defined quality and according to
comprehensive codified policies" . A “digital library” is fundamentally a resource that reconstructs the
intellectual substance and services of a traditional library in digital form. Digital libraries consist of digital
contents (which are sometimes but not necessarily text-based), interconnections (which may be simple links
or complex metadata or query-based relationships), and software (which may be simple pages in HTML or
complex database management systems). A single, simple, stand-alone web page is probably not a digital
library in any meaningful sense, any more than a single page or a single book is a traditional library. A mass
of raw data such as comes from the Hubble telescope is probably also not a digital library, though its
contents arguably belongs in one. Digital libraries are not replacements for traditional libraries. They are
rather the future of traditional libraries, much as medieval manuscript libraries simply became a specialized
and much revered part of the larger print-based libraries that we have today .Arms, W.Y. (2000) in his
article “Key Concepts in the Architecture of the Digital Library” stated that digital library is a managed
collection of information, with associated services, where the information is stored in digital formats and
accessible over a network. In the digital library, information is stored as "digital objects". A primitive idea of

1
Deputy Librarian ,Green University of Bangladesh
2
Assistant Librarian, University of Asia Pacific
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a digital object is that it is just a set of bits, but this idea is too simple. The content of even the most basic
digital object has some structure, and information, such as intellectual property rights, must be associated
with the digital object. In other hand a digital repository stores digital objects, both the content and the
metadata. Leiner (1998) in his article “The NCSTRL approach to open architecture for the confederated
digital library” reported that digital library is the collection of services and the collection of information
objects that support users in dealing with information objects available directly or indirectly via
electronic/digital means
The National Science Foundation (NSF) has this explanation on its web site for the Digital Library Initiative
projects: Digital Libraries basically store materials in electronic format and manipulate large collections of
those materials effectively. Research into digital libraries is research into network information systems,
concentrating on how to develop the necessary infrastructure to effectively mass-manipulate the information
on the Net (NSF, 1999). Association of Research Libraries (1995) in their article “Definition and purposes
of a digital library” defines that The digital library is not a single entity; The digital library requires
technology to link the resources of many services that are transparent to the end users; Universal access to
digital libraries and information services is a goal; Digital library collections are not limited to document
surrogates: they extend to digital formats that cannot be represented or distributed in printed formats .
Chapman, S. and Kenny, A.R. (1996) in their article “Digital conversion of research library materials: a
case for full informational capture” argues that Digital collections will remain viable over time only if they
meet baseline standards of quality and functionality. Key source attributes have been identified and
translated to digital requirements; image quality should be confirmed by comparing the full resolution digital
images on-screen and in print to the original documents under magnification. Erway, R.L. (1996) in the
article “Digital initiatives of the Research Libraries Group” affirms that the nature of digital conversion
activities makes them particularly well-suited to collaborative endeavors. First, digitization is costly. No
matter how compelling projections about potential cost-savings are, no matter how low the cost of storage
becomes, and no matter how much conversion expertise is developed, the truth remains that digitizing is an
additional cost libraries and archives are being asked to bear in the midst of budget cuts and decreased
staffing. Digitizing does not replace the need to perform all the traditional tasks like acquiring, organizing,
cataloging, and preserving materials. Further, in successfully responding to user needs, digitization results in
increased expectations. So, digital conversion is not likely to be a short-term activity. But by working
together, institutions can attract funding, minimize costs, and prevent duplicative efforts. Steele, Colin.
(1995) in “The digital library: do's, don'ts and developments” conducted the term ‘digital library’ now seems
to have become an encompassing term for what was once known as the ‘virtual’ or the ‘electronic’ library.
opensource.org (2012) “Open Source Initiative (OSI)” discussed Open source software is software that can
be freely used, changed, and shared (in modified or unmodified form) by anyone. Open source software is
made by many people, and distributed under licenses that comply with the Open Source Definition.
Chepesuik, R. (1997). “The future is here: America's libraries go digital” discussed that American
universities are on the cutting edge of digital technology. Many already have digital libraries functioning at
their institutions. You can see them, use them. The future is here.

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DSpace 1.8 System Documentation (2012) defined that DSpace is the software of choice for academic, non-
profit, and commercial organizations building open digital repositories. It is free and easy to install "out of
the box" and completely customizable to fit the needs of any organization.

Background of the study:

The first use of the term digital library in print may have been in a 1988 report to the Corporation for
National Research Initiatives. The term digital libraries were first popularized by the NSF/DARPA/NASA
Digital Libraries Initiative in 1994. These draw heavily on As We May Think by Vannevar Bush in 1945,
which set out a vision not in terms of technology, but user experience. The term virtual library was initially
used interchangeably with digital library, but is now primarily used for libraries that are virtual in other
senses (such as libraries which aggregate distributed content).
A distinction is often made between content that was created in a digital format, known as born-digital, and
information that has been converted from a physical medium, e.g. paper, by digitizing. It should also be
noted that not all electronic content is in digital data format. The term hybrid library is sometimes used for
libraries that have both physical collections and electronic collections. For example, American Memory is a
digital library within the Library of Congress. Some important digital libraries also serve as long term
archives. Such as the Digital Public Library of America, seek to make digital information widely accessible
through public libraries.

Rationale of the study

In the age of information explosion, libraries and information resource centers have become multimedia
centers due to adoption of new technological devices and changing nature of their information storage,
retrieval and services. During the last 25 years, the computer and telecommunication technologies began to
build up an information society, which has crossed the geographical limitations and has provided facilities to
access into global information systems. As a result, nature of modern librarianship has changed considerably
with the advent of new technologies. In fact, ‘automation’ is an indispensable part of modern library’s
information systems development, organization, management and services. In the present ‘age of
information’, automation has been making tremendous impact on different sectors of the libraries and
information centers. In view of complex and multi-faceted user requirements, this results in numerous
specialization and flow of non-stop information, decreasing comprehensive acquisition of documents for
libraries, growing demands of information, increasing number of users, etc. Automation has been playing a
vital role in improving the capabilities of libraries/information canters towards attaining satisfaction of their
users.

Purpose of the study:

1. To identify open source package for digitization of Library system.
2. To find out which areas are digitalized.
3. To uncover the important apparatus for digital library system.
4. To find out the features of different open source software for developing countries like Bangladesh.

Data Collection Methods: Secondary data has collected using web analysis, web
searching, and literature searching and observation method.
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Data analysis:
After applying different methodologies and reviewing different types of literatures by
which information will be collected then, that has analyzed very carefully.

Introduction to digital library

Several terms have been coined at different times to represent the concept of library without books, Libraries
having influence on computer readable format or having access to influence on digitized or digital format.
The terms which have been in vague at different times include: Paperless library, electronic library, virtual
library, libraries without boundaries and now it has been moved to digital libraries. The term digital library
on one hand, is used to refer to a system or application whose functions are chiefly to extend electronic
access to material available in a conventional library to a remote user. On the other hand, it is used to
describe both commercial and academic systems designed to enable electronic access to a large collection of
electronic documents to authorized users. The term's digital library and electronic library are used
interchangeably and synonymously. The term "virtual library" or "library without walls" usually refers to the
Meta resources, subject portals that extend virtual accessibility of digital collections from several diverse
sources without the users even knowing where there source actually resides. A virtual library would
potentially be enormous, linking huge collections from all around the globe, or it could be very small,
consisting of few hundred links to digital resources maintained by an individual.

The hybrid library is in the continuum between the conventional and digital libraries where electronic and
paper-based information sources are used alongside each other. The challenge associated with the
management of the hybrid library is to encourage end-user to provide information in variety of formats and
from a number of local and remote sources in a seamlessly integrated way. The hybrid library aims to bring
a range of technologies from different sources together in the context of a working library. In effect a hybrid
library maintains all or its major parts of its collection in a digitize form as an alternative to supplement the
print material currently found in Libraries. It has a web-enabled computerized catalogue (WEBPAC)
accessible through the Internet and most of the in-house services like acquisition, books processing
circulation are computerized. A hybrid library has a strong presence in the internet with a home page for the
library providing an integrated access interface, not only to digital collections available locally, but also to
the other commercial and non-commercial web-based digitized collections across the world.

Characteristics of digital library

The term digital library may mean different things to different people, but it is not merely a collection of
electronic information. It is an organized system of digital information that can serve as a rich resource for
its user community. A digital library emphases the equitable and timely access to a vast amount of diverse
resources in a shared mode in a given specialty, lifting traditional barriers of time and space. Digital libraries
may have the following characteristics associated with them:
1. Digital Libraries are the digital counterparts of traditional libraries and includes electronic (digital) as well
as print and other (e.g. audio, video, graphics, animation etc) materials.
2. A digital library owns and controls the information. It provides access to information, not just pointers to it
3. Digital library has a unified organizational structure with consistent points for accessing the data.
4. A digital library is not single entity; it may also provide access to digital material and resources from
outside the actual confines of any one digital library.
5. Digital libraries support quick and efficient access to a large number of distributed but inter linked
Information sources that are seamlessly integrated.
6. Digital libraries have collections that ( I) are large and persist over time; ( ii ) are well organized and
managed; ( iii ) contain many formats ( iv) contain objects and not just their representation; (v) contain
objects that may be otherwise unobtainable.
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7. Digital libraries include all the processes and services offered by traditional libraries, though these
processes will have to be revised to accommodate differences between digital and paper media.

Components of digital library

Digital Library consists of
1. User Interfaces or user 2. Storage Media or (Repository) 3. Identifiers
User Interfaces or user
A standard internet browser is used for the actual interactions with the user .This can be Netscape Navigator
or Microsoft internet explorer. Through the browser user connects to client server (Repository) URL with
TCP technology.
Storage media (Repository) and Identifiers
Stores and manage digital objects and other information. The interface for thesis called Repository access
protocol (RAP). These Repository will have Identifiers with the help of identifiers users can identify internet
resources such as digital objects. In other words identifiers shows the identifier of the repository where the
objects are stored. Repository consists of Data, Metadata and Meta-object
Data
The things which are digitized form the data. The materials selected may include Image text, Audio and
video. This material need to be acquired and process is called data acquisition this can be done by scanner
and digital cameras. The place where all the digitized objects are stored is called repository.
Metadata
Metadata is the data about data that describe the content and attributes of any particular item in a digital
library. Metadata describes the items that are digitized. Metadata is important for digital libraries because it
is the key to resources. An example of metadata is traditional card record of a book. Each digitized item will
have metadata. For the creation of metadata MARC or Dublin core Format is used. Some of the Dublin core
elements are Title, subject, description, source, language, relation, coverage, publisher and creator. Normally
metadata are created using HTML or XML.
Meta -object
The repository may have plenty of digital objects in the form of data each of this data will
be explained used metadata. The meta-object provides references to the set of Digital
objects

Koha and Its Uses

Koha is an source Integrated, used world-wide by public, school and special libraries. The name comes
from a Māori term for a gift or donation. Koha is an open source Integrated library management software. It
is a web based application built on MARC21 Metadata standard. Its development is contributed by a number
of library and non-library professionals across the world. Thousands of libraries are using Koha across the
world, including Bangladesh.
Koha was created in 1999 by Katipo Communications for the Horowhenua Library Trust in New Zealand,
and the first installation went live in January 2000. From 2000, companies started providing commercial

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support for koha, building to more than 20 today. In 2001, Paul Poulain (of Marseille, France) began adding
many new features to Koha, most significantly support for multiple languages. By 2010, Koha has been
translated from its original English into French, Chinese, Arabic and several other languages. Support for the
cataloguing and search standards MARC and Z39.50 was added in 2002 and later sponsored by the Athens
County Public Libraries. In France Paul Poulain co-founded BibLibre in 2007.In 2005, an Ohio-based
company, Metavore, Inc., trading as LibLime, was established to support Koha and added many new
features, including support for Zebra sponsored by the Crawford County Federated Library System. Zebra
support increased the speed of searches as well as improving scalability to support tens of millions of
bibliographic records.
In 2007 a group of libraries in Vermont began testing the use of Koha for Vermont libraries. At first a
separate implementation was created for each library. Then the Vermont Organization of Koha Automated
Libraries (VOKAL) was organized to create one database to be used by libraries. This database was rolled
out in 2011. Thirty-seven libraries have chosen to adopt Koha and moved to the shared production
environment hosted and supported by ByWater Solutions. Previously Vermont used software from Follett.In
2011 the Spanish Ministry of Culture maintains KOBLI, a tailored version of Koha based on an earlier
report.

Features
Koha is web-based ILS, with a SQL database (MySQL preferred) backend with cataloguing data stored in
MARC and accessible via Z39.50 or SRU. The user interface is very configurable and adaptable and has
been translated into many languages. Koha has most of the features that would be expected in an ILS,
including:Simple, clear interface for librarians and members (patrons) ,Various Web 2.0 facilities like
tagging, comment, Social sharing and RSS feeds ,Union catalog facility ,Customizable search ,Circulation
and borrower management ,Full acquisitions system including budgets and pricing information (including
supplier and currency conversion) ,Simple acquisitions system for the smaller library Ability to cope with
any number of branches, patrons, patron categories, item categories, items, currencies and other data, Serials
system for magazines or newspapers ,Reporting and Reading lists for members.
Koha System Architecture

Koha is based on client-server architecture.

Network Server: Koha can be installed on a server running Linux, Unix, Mac. The recommended
operating system is stable version of Debian Linux, although Koha can run on any modern operating
system.
Client Workstations:Koha requires only a web browser on the workstation (a graphical browser, or
even a text browser for the OPAC). Koha thus functions on PCs running Windows, PCs running
Linux, Macs, or even UNIX workstations.
Koha runs over any TCP-IP network.
Koha Requirement
Koha version 3.4.6, Free(download from http://www.koha.org)
Apache web server, 2.0.58 ,free(download from http://www.apache.org)
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 MySQL. Relational Database Management System, free (download fromhttp://www.mysql.com)
Perl modules 5.8, free.(download from http://www.cpan.org)
Linux Debian 6 or RHEL 3.0, 4.0, 5.0 or Anyflavour of LINUX or WINDOWS Server.
Modules of Koha

Modules of Koha

Fig-1:Modules of Koha

Acquisition
This module are consists of Recommendation management ,Ordering process to vendor ,Budget and fund
management ,Late order reminder via email ,Invoicing process ,Accessioning and giving shelf location
Cataloging

Cataloging
Easy to use MARC format
Import data from LOC
Z39.50 compliant
Authority file for cataloging

Fig-2: Cataloging module

It is clear that library automation is extremely necessary to achieve or implement digital library or e-library
concept. Automated libraries cannot function at their full strength if necessary tools and accessories are not
incorporated for appropriate applications. Now library authorities are realizing that there is no way to escape
library automation. They are finding various ways to finance their library automation project. Librarian is
also realizing that they cannot remain indifferent to the change; otherwise they will be labeled outdated. The
present libraries are facing great difficulty in copying with the large population with the conventional
method. Computerization of the library process is the only way of ensuring that the library will be able to
perform its tasks efficiently and improve its services to then faculty members and perspective users, both
nationally and internationally. However though the progress of library automation is not satisfactory
compared to most of countries in the region but automation of the libraries are encouraging.

DSpace and its facilities

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Digital Libraries have greatly evolved during the last few years. Digital Library management system evolved
with the inception of Digital Library. This system provides the appropriate framework both for the
production and administration of Digital Library System. The DLMS (Digital Library Management System)
available are commercial as well as open source. But, Open Source DLMS’s (Digital Library Management
System) are the one that will be studied. There are several types of digital library software and institutional
repository such as CONTENTdm, Digital Commons, DigiTool, DSpace, EPrints, EQUELLA Repository,
Fedora, Islandora, intraLibrary, Open Repository, Zentity and Greenstone(Repository software survey.
November 2010).We have selected only two software for convenient of our study and considering
Bangladesh context. Namely: Greenstone and DSpace.The Institutional Repository, DSpace is a joint project
of the MIT Libraries and HP labs. It is a digital asset management system that allows institutions, such as
libraries to collect, archive, index, and disseminate the scholarly and intellectual efforts of a community.
Some of its characteristics as shown in DSpace documentation are as:
a) It is a service model for open access and/or digital archiving for perennial access.
b) Provides a platform to frame an Institutional Repository
c) Helps to make available institution-based scholarly material in digital formats

DSpace’s Background
DSpace (Digital Institutional Repository) is an open source institutional digital repository software.
The DSpace project was initiated in July 2000 as part of the HP-MIT alliance (Hewlett Packard /
Massachusetts Institute of Technology).
The project was given $1.8 million USD by HP over two years to build a digital archive for MIT
that would handle the 10,000 article produced by MIT authors annually.
Then it becomes popular worldwide increasingly.

Introduction to DSpace
DSpace is a platform that allows to capture items in any format – in text, audio, video, image and
data.
It distributes the contents over the web
It indexes intellectual works, so users can search and retrieve all items. It preserves digital work over
the long term.
DSpace provides a way to manage research materials and publications in a professionally
maintained repository to give them greater visibility and accessibility over time.
Key roles of DSpace
DSpace is typically used as an institutional repository. It has three main roles:
 Facilitate the capture and ingest of materials including metadata about the materials
 Facilitate easy access to the materials, both by listing and searching
 Facilitate the long term preservation of the digital materials
Features of DSpace
An open source software for digital object management
Create, search and retrieve digital objects
Facilitate preservation of digital objects professionally
Allows open access and digital archiving
Allows building institutional repositories
Low cost, including all hardware and software components
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 User friendly
Robust, scalable and modular
Multi-user (Including both searching and maintenance)
Multimedia digital object enabled
Possible DSpace Contents:
We can preserve all types of content including Journal Articles ,Preprints, Postprints ,Technical Reports
,Working Papers , Conference Papers ,Electronic Theses/Dissertations ,Audio/Video ,Image .Lecture notes,
visualizations, simulations ,Digitized library collections ,Datasets (e.g. statistical, geospatial, scientific etc.

Benefits of using DSpace

Getting your research results out quickly, to a worldwide audience

Reaching a worldwide audience through exposure to search engines such as Google
Storing reusable teaching materials that you can use with course management systems
Archiving and distributing material you would currently put on your personal website
Storing examples of students’ projects
Showcasing students’ theses
Keeping track of your own publications/bibliography
Having a persistent network identifier for your work, that never changes or breaks
No more page charges for images. You can point to your images’ persistent identifiers in your
published articles.

Figure-3: User interface of Dspace

Recommendations

Based on our study we have come to following recommendations for Bangladesh context:
1. Automation of Manual Library is the prime issue for Libraries of Bangladesh
2. Koha may be the best solution as it is free and developing everyday by professionals and IT expert of
different countries of the world.
3. DSpace may be only solution for implementing institutional repository and upgrading the web ranking of
the institute.
4. Study on other software also needed to explore the opportunity for Bangladesh.
5. Government and institutional support and Networking are essential to implement the Right to information.
6. Digital movement may be only solution for ensuring the citizens right to information.
7. Training of manpower on digital library needed to strengthen the digital library movement.

Conclusion
In this era of the Internet and distributed, multimedia computing, new and emerging classes of information
systems applications have swept into the lives of office workers and everyday people. New applications

9
ranging from digital libraries, multimedia systems, geographic information systems, and collaborative
computing to electronic commerce, virtual reality, and electronic video arts and games have created
tremendous opportunities for information and computer science researchers and practitioners. Digital
libraries can meet the needs of user communities through a variety of services connected with complex
collections and various structuring mechanisms for managing data and descriptions of that data. They
involve not only computer and information science but also humanities and arts. Research and development
in this field is being conducted actively in many communities. Each year workshops and conferences aim at
establishing an agenda for investigation and creating new techniques and a consensus as to how to handle
difficult problems. Important aspects that need to be carefully handled in DLs are document representations;
collection creation, management, preservation, and archiving; usability; interoperability; intellectual
property; social and economic implications; scalability; and supporting network infrastructure. Every issue
needs to be handled in both local as well as global contexts, helping lead toward the concept of a world-wide
digital library.Koha and Dspace can play vital role in digitizing the libraries of developing countries.

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13 www.kohacommunity.org
14 www.dspace.org

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