Going Digital:
Chao-Chen Chen
Professor, Graduate
Institute of Library and Information Science
Co-Principal
Investigator of Applications Service
National Digital Archives Program
E-mail¡Gcc4073@ms73.hinet.net
ABSTRACT:
KEYWORDS: e-Taiwan project, m-Taiwan project, National Digital Archives Project (NDAP),
National Science and Technology Program for e-Learning (ELNP), digital plans, digital
experiences, digital libraries
1. Introduction
Over the years, research and development of information technology
in
What follows includes an introduction to the significance of
these landmark projects and programs as well as a sharing of experiences we
have gained and challenges we have yet to face.
2. Epoch-Making e-Plans
in
2.1. e-Taiwan Project
To meet with the
challenges we face in the digital world, the Taiwan Government has, in recent
years, actively promoted digitization through a number of initiatives to
improve the nation's IT proficiency and the competitiveness of domestic IT
industries. In May 2002, the National Information and Communication Initiative
Committee (NICI) and other governmental agencies worked together to launch the
e-Taiwan Project as a part of the Challenge 2008 Plan. The focus of the
e-Taiwan Project is to design and implement programs for the development of the
nation's information and communications infrastructure and applications.(FIND, 2004)
The e-Taiwan Project will bring benefits to economic development, infrastructure framework and government services. The Taiwan Government has planned to invest in this project a total of NTD30 billion in 6 years. The enterprises thus created are expected, in return, to generate a revenue of about NTD100 billion and offer more than 20,000 job opportunities. Moreover, it is predicted that the number of Internet users will reach 50% of the total population and the broadband subscribers 35% by 2007. In terms of government services, it will bring 600 major government services online and expedite document sharing efficiency.(e-Taiwan Project Office, 2005)
The vision of e-Taiwan is diagramed as follows: (e-Taiwan
Project Office, 2005)
Fig-1: The vision of
e-Taiwan
Source: NICI (2005). The vision of e-Taiwan. Retrieved
There are 59 subprojects in the e-Taiwan Project and they
are classified into 5 major categories: (e-Taiwan Project Office, 2005)
Ø
e-Infrastructure subprojects. They serve as the pillar in promoting
information and communication infrastructure development as well as network
security. The objective is to establish a comprehensive network of wired,
wireless, mobile and fixed broadband Internet networks.
Ø
e-Society subprojects. They promote online education, entertainment, culture,
health care, and transportation services. These initiatives will improve the
quality of services available to the public.
Ø
e-Industry subprojects. They serve as the pillar to promote industry
digitization, facilitating
Ø
e-Government subprojects. They stimulate an on-going implementation of
innovative government services including integrated ¡§single-window¡¨ government
services, G2B2C electronic transaction systems, and online public services.
Ø
e-Opportunity subprojects. They aim to maximize the usage of limited resources
to expand digital opportunities and improve access in remote regions of
2.2. m-Taiwan Project
The third IT
revolution has configured personal computers, Internet and mobile
communications into a "Ubiquitous Network". By utilizing this
network, the government, entrepreneurs and end-users are able to get needed
information by any device, at anytime, in anywhere, with more efficient, more convenient,
and better quality. With the advantages of world no.1 production value of WLAN
products and mobile phone penetration rate, the Taiwan Government has devoted
itself to sharpen our mobile-competitiveness. The National Information and
Communication Initiative (NICI) Committee of the Executive Yuan (Cabinet), the Ministry
of the Interior (MOI) and the Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) coordinated
to propose the "m-Taiwan Project" with a budget
of NTD37 billion dollars in five years. The "m-Taiwan
Project" is expected to beef up the wireless networks, integrate mobile
phone networks, setup the optical-fiber backbones, and execute the Integrated
Beyond 3rd Generation (iB3G) Double Network Integration Plan. This project has
its purpose to shift
The vision of the m-Taiwan Project is as follows: (m-Taiwan, 2005)
Fig-2: The vision of m-Taiwan
Source: NICI (2005). The vision of m-Taiwan. Retrieved
April 28 from
http://www.nici.nat.gov.tw/content/application/nici/m_vision/index.php?sel=m_vision
The m-Taiwan Project is expected to achieve the following
objectives: (FIND, 2005)
Ø
To
construct a barrier-less online environment, to improve
Ø
To
upgrade
Ø
To
promote the communications industry to another "trillion dollar"
industry (in addition to communication manufacturing and communication service
industries) in
Ø
To
aggregate the efforts of the cell-phone manufacturers, content providers, and
telecom companies in order to develop the broadband & wireless
infrastructure.
Ø
To
improve the deployment of broadband & wireless infrastructure and
availability of e-government services in remote areas so as to narrow the
digital divide.
The m-Taiwan Project attempts to
realize the vision of ¡§m-Taiwan, Unlimited
Application, and Brave New Mobile World¡¨. m-Taiwan will bridge the digital divide and let everyone use
information communication technologies anytime and anywhere. It will also transform
a)
m-Life
m-Life
has 4 major sub-projects: m-Social Well-Being, m-Communities, m-Entertainment, and
m-Health Care. It hopes to bring to the Taiwanese
people a comprehensive well-being and construct a quality living environment.
b)
m-Services
m-Services
aims to complete the basic infrastructure in the Taiwan Government and bring convenient mobile services to everyone. A 6,000 km
broadband channel will be built in urban communities/centers in every corner of Taiwan and fiber optic connections will be provided for residential
areas.
c)
m-Learning
m-Learning
begins at school and plans to overcome the limitations of space, thus creating a
new wave of lifelong e-Learning.
2.3. National Science and Technology Program for e-Learning
(ELNP)
Included in the e-Taiwan Project are
two important national-scale programs: 1) National Science and Technology
Program for e-Learning (ELNP); and 2) National Digital Archives Program (NDAP).
What distinguishes plans on the national scale such as these is that their
proposed expenses are guaranteed. In other words, their budgets have been
passed in the legislations. We will introduce these two programs in this
section and the next.
On
The program architecture has three main apexes (Fig- 3): (NSC, 2003)
Ø
To upgrade
Ø
To stimulate the development of industries related
to e-Learning.
Ø
To bring about new waves in academic research.
Fig-3 ELNP
architecture
Source: e-Learning
National Project in
Planning &
Evaluation Div., National Science Council, 2003
http://france.nsc.gov.tw/france/e-learning921201_summary.ppt
According to the architecture, ELNP has 7 major projects.
1) e-Learning
for Everyone:
This project transforms
established centers and institutions such as libraries, schools, and training
centers for job skills, Internet cafés and citizen clubs into e-Learning
classrooms. Moreover, in order to develop e-Learning activities, these
classrooms use resources including a combination of existing content platforms
such as education resources, teaching materials for career training, test
databases, health education materials, military training materials and so on. Through
diverse e-Learning classrooms, we can promote lifelong e-Learning to target
groups.(ELNP, 2005)
2) Narrowing
Digital Divide
Digital divide is the gap between
those who can use computers and Internet technologies and those who cannot.
Digital divide can be demonstrated by poor information access, scarce
education, rare job opportunities, low income, etc. The main tasks of this
project are: establishing indicators for digital divide, evaluating the current
situation of digital divide, analyzing factors that contribute to digital
divide, planning for strategies of how to eliminate digital divide, creating
integrated resources, and seeking out invisible underprivileged groups in the
digital divide.
3) Mobile
Learning Device ¡V Multi-functional e-Schoolbags
This project researches and
develops advanced mobile learning devices such as multi-functional
e-Schoolbags. These m-Learning devices can help
people in learning while surpassing the limits previously imposed by time and
location.
4)
This project wants to create a
5)
R&D of advanced e-Learning technology
The advanced e-Learning technology
in
6) Fundamental
research on learning and cognition in e-Learning
This project studies ¡§science,
technologies and mathematics¡¨ in the aspects of learning and cognition. It will
create a digital literacy database, a digital database with e-Learning/teaching/assessment
models, an e-Learning strategy and behavior database, and a database on the
mental and physical impacts of e-Learning on children and students. This project
strives to develop native e-Learning theories and structures of ¡§science,
technologies and mathematics.¡¨
7) Policy guidance and manpower cultivation
This
project aims at the study of planning and developing the environment for
e-Learning industry. Moreover, it trains personnel and explores policies
relating to e-Learning profession.
2.4. National Digital
Archives Program (NDAP)
The ¡§National Digital Archives
Program¡¨ (NDAP) was launched on
The ultimate goals of NDAP are
manifold, aiming to help preserve and sustain our culture and civilization. They
are:
Ø To preserve national culture collections;
Ø To popularize fine cultural holdings;
Ø To revitalize cultural heritage and cultural development;
Ø To invigorate cultural, content, and value-added industries;
Ø To promote knowledge and information sharing;
Ø To enhance research, education, and life-long learning;
Ø To improve literacy, creativity, and quality of life;
Ø To explore collaboration among international communities.
NDAP has archived a large amount of digital content in these 4 years. The subjects covered in the archives include botany, geology, zoology, world maps, astronomical maps, archeology, etc. The core value of digital content is the diverse application of value-added content. Only when the content of digital archives is diversely applied and used can it demonstrate its value to everyone. Fig-4 illustrates a scenario of what we envision to be the derived benefits of the NDAP.
|
Figure-4 a scenario of derived benefits of NDAP.
Source: NDAP website. http://www.ndap.org.tw/1_intro_en/outcomes.php
For the digital content to be widely used, it is imperative that commercialization be in place to enhance information accessibility and public awareness. In the process of commercialization, licensing becomes an integral part to help ensure that quality and integrity are not compromised in the information shared.
This year, we held ¡§NDAP 2005 Exhibition and Licensing¡¨, a
major step taken to further flesh out key-points for
Ø
To commercialize value-added products. NDAP
encourages various industries to apply for digital archives.
Ø
To standardize licensing process. NDAP will
create a single window on licensing affairs, and speed up the process of
commercializing digital archives in their businesses.
The attendees of ¡§NDAP 2005 Exhibition and Licensing¡¨ include
archiving institutions (e.g., National Palace Museum, National Museum of
History, Academia Sinica, Historica
Sinica, National Taiwan University, and National
Library of Taiwan), demonstration institutions (e.g., National Science &
Technology Museum, National Museum of Marine Biology and Aquarium, National
Museum of Prehistory), and industry affiliations. Through this exhibition and
licensing, NDAP, Council for Cultural Affairs, academic research institutions,
education organizations, value-added industrial enterprises and commercial
agencies will combine digitized content to meet with market demands.
3. Experiences from
Undoubtedly, e-Taiwan and m-Taiwan
will elevate
In the process of implementing NDAP and ELNP, some of the
major results and problems have so far arisen:
3.1. NDAP: Results
and Problems
NDAP has yielded the following encouraging results:
Ø
Enhanced academics and businesses in their
capability to process large amount of information flow.
Ø
Enriched our otherwise rather poor information
on
Ø
Made accessible to the general public materials
only available to research scientists in the past.
Ø
Expended cooperation circles among research
scientists who would otherwise be rather isolated in their individual labs.
Ø
Speeded up the utilization and usefulness of
information via commercialization process.
Beyond dispute, NDAP has yielded some significant results. Yet,
we are not to overlook the problems encountered, including the following:
Ø
Due to lack of standards to evaluate the quality
and value of information to be considered for digitalization, expenses have
been wasted on relatively trivial data. Consequently, information, which is
minimal in value, has been wrongly judged and overpriced in licensing and
commercialization.
Ø
Because of digitization technology coming
largely from
Ø
Copyright presents another critical issue yet to
be resolved satisfactorily. The majority of digital archives contain materials
which are open to the public with neither copyrights nor downloading rights
incurred on them. Consequently, financial benefits expected to be generated
from those endeavors have been rather minimal.
3.2. ELNP: Results
and Problems
e-Learning has so far effectuated
the following impact upon academic, business, and government institutions:
Ø
Training cost overall has been reduced and its
effectiveness increased.
Ø
Distant learning has become an effective tool at
various levels. Students have additional access to the wealth of information
and materials available in an e-Learning environment.
Yet, there exist some problems to be resolved, including the following:
Ø
More business CEOs need to be convinced so that
they will have a far-sight vision for e-Learning.
Ø
More school principals are yet to be educated so
that they will be more open-minded about developing an e-Learning environment. It
is critical that they would not waste their resources by merely duplicating e-Learning
materials already existing.
Ø
More schools are to see that more teachers are
willing to create and competent in developing e-Learning materials as well as
more students take advantage of the e-Learning environment.
Ø
Integration is to be accomplished in e-Learning
materials between libraries, government organizations, and businesses. Authorization
to access e-Learning materials has to be incorporated as part of quality and
integrity control process.
4. Impacts of Digital Waves on Libraries
Libraries apparently
constitute a vital part of the infrastructure of an information society. Impacted
by digitalization waves, libraries in
Ø
To digitize their special collections so that
they can be widely available to the general public;
Ø
To create institutional repository so that
publications from colleges, universities, and research institutions can be made
available for open access;
Ø
To pool together several libraries to purchase e-books,
e-journals, and databases so that they can readily be accessible to the general
readership as soon as possible;
Ø
To construct a portal for information services, linking
related knowledge bases so that enquiries can be answered with spontaneous
responses;
Ø
To construct supporting facilities for e-Learning
and to encourage learners to use e-libraries and digital collections.
Internet allows libraries to closely collaborate between/among
themselves and with other non-library institutions, as librarians expand their domains
and services from library in-house collections to Internet resources and other
digital archives. Digitization and modern technologies help libraries to disseminate
information, deliver their services, and narrow the gaps easily neglected by commercial
information agencies. Digitization and its related enterprises inevitably
entail greater social responsibilities. Situated in the cutting edge of this
digitization trend, we need to consider responsively what roles librarians are
to play and discuss issues about information communication, access and
availability.
Reference
ELNP (2005), ¡§About
ELNP¡¨, National Science and Technology Program for e-Learning. Available at: http://elnpweb.ncu.edu.tw/english/english1.htm
(Retrieved: 20050611)
e-Taiwan Project Office (2005), ¡§e-Taiwan Project Introduction¡¨. Available
at: http://www.etaiwan.nat.gov.tw/group/application/etaiwan/index.php
(Retrieved: 20050610)
FIND (2005/05/05), ¡§e-Taiwan
Program was revised in 2004. The Infrastructure, e-Society, e-Industry,
e-Government and e-Opportunity plans form the core initiatives of the e-Taiwan
Program¡¨. FIND (Focus on Internet
News and Data). Available at: http://www.find.org.tw/eng/news.asp?pos=0&subjectid=6&msgid=165
(Retrieved: 20050610)
FIND (2005/01/08), Taiwan Government
proposed "M-Taiwan Program" to promote a ubiquitous network and
e-services in
NICI (2005), ¡§The ¡§M-Taiwan
Program¡¨ hopes to build
National Science Council (2003), ¡§e-Learning National
Project in
NDAP (2005), National
Digital Archives Program. Available at:
http://www.ndap.org.tw/ (Retrieved: 20050610)
Originally presented at the American Library Association International Relations Committee 2005 Program on June 27 in Chicago.
Submitted to CLIEJ on 11 July 2005.
Copyright © 2005 Chao-Chen Chen
Chen, Chao-Chen. (2005). "Going Digital: Taiwan Experiences," Chinese Librarianship: an International Electronic Journal, no.20 (December 1, 2005). URL: http://www.iclc.us/cliej/cl20joyce.htm |