Introductory blog post by Professor Pelle Snickars, Author of the Report
From the Introduction:
The primary function of library labs are to deliver digital collections as data (or datasets) to researchers and other interested users, as well as to enable research or tinkering with the same data. Library labs are sometimes devoted to experimentation with provided datasets, but they can also be envisioned as a core service that more and more national libraries provide with the lab (and its services) becoming an integrated part of a developed digital infrastructure. The foundation of a library lab at the National Library of Sweden would hence strengthened and support a commitment to cutting edge data driven research, and also expand the library research infrastructure substantially. This report suggest that the National Library should launch a library lab. The main purpose of the library lab datalab.kb.se is to support all forms of research on digitised heritage.
Table of Content
Direct to Complete Blog Post
Direct to Full Text Report (28 pages; PDF)