DOHA: Qatar National Library (QNL) showcased the technology that is driving the preservation and digitisation of valuable Qatari, Arab and Islamic historical records, at the Qitcom 2014 Conference and Exhibition.
The Library is a gold sponsor of the ictQatar-backed event, where visitors to its exhibition booth, including the Prime Minister and Minister of the Interior H E Sheikh Abdullah bin Nasser bin Khalifa Al Thani, witnessed a live demonstration of the digitisation process where QNL’s experts presented how they use state-of-the-art technology to preserve, conserve and provide the nation’s heritage for future generations.
The nine-stage process started with an explanation about how the library selects the most relevant books and manuscripts to undergo the preservation process. The experts then demonstrated how fragile and damaged items are restored and conserved, before taking visitors through the process that scans and saves the items for the historical record.
Participants were fascinated with the processes the QNL experts use in order to enhance and standardise images and text, before entering a new item in the library’s digital catalogue.
QNL’s preservation and digitisation efforts will enable modern day users to easily read and perform computer search functions that assist academic research or even simple enjoyment.
The techniques have so far been applied to preserve important collections from the nation’s history including valuable historic materials digitised by QNL that are accessible to the world through the World Digital Library.
Speaking after a demonstration of the operation, QNL’s Associate Director for Administration and Planning Saadi Al Said said, “Qatar National Library’s goal is to preserve the nation’s heritage for future generations. The QNL’s cutting edge efforts make knowledge from around the Arab and Gulf region available to modern users, and the technological advanced capacities enable the library to add additional useful information and context.”