ftp.cdrom.com/pub/cdrom//cdrom.tar/cdrom/photo_cd/educom.txt

Text File | 1992-11-16 | 11KB | 205 lines

Eastman Kodak Company, 343 State Street, Rochester, NY  14650

CORNELL, USC TO DEMO PHOTO CD TECHNOLOGY
FOR ACCESS TO IMAGE COLLECTIONS


BALTIMORE, Oct. 28 - Researchers will gain on-screen access to
thousands of historical photographs, paintings and other images in
a demonstration of Eastman Kodak CompanyUs Photo CD
technology at two major universities.
The Kodak Library Image Consortium demonstration project
will include Cornell University, which initially will scan onto Photo
CD discs photographs of a collection of color paintings, drawings
and manuscripts from noted ornithologist Louis Agassiz Fuertes;
and the University of Southern California, which will scan
thousands of historical black-and-white photographs from the USC
LibraryUs Regional History Collection that document the history
and development of Southern California and the Southwest over
the past 130 years.
Photo CD images from both collections are on display here at
EDUCOM U92 in the Kodak booth, number 902.
Along with Kodak and the two universities, the project is also
sponsored by the Commission on Preservation and Access, a non-
profit organization that coordinates efforts to make documented
records accessible to future generations.
"This project brings together some of the nation's leading
experts in library science, information technology, and a range of
academic disciplines," said KodakUs Donald E. Olson, director of
new markets development for higher education.  "We are delighted
that these experts are working with Kodak to demonstrate the
potential of Photo CD technology for expanding access to the
unique collections of different institutions."

The Kodak Photo CD system allows photographic images to be
scanned onto compact discs for input to a computer, using a CD-
ROM XA drive, or for display on television using a Photo CD
player.  The players, which also play audio CDs, became available
to consumers in August.
In addition to the original Photo CD disc format, which stores
up to 100 35 mm film images at full photographic resolution, Kodak
has announced a number of other disc formats  -  all of which are
compatible with the home players and CD-ROM drives.   They
include discs which store the larger film formats favored by
professional photographers (like 120 and 4x5), also at full
resolution; discs that enable the creation of on-disc programs that
merge images with text, graphics and sound;  catalog discs, which
store up to 6,000 images at video resolution for easy distribution;
and discs designed for medical applications that store digital
diagnostic modalities  -  like computed tomography (CT) scans and
magnetic resonance images (MR)  -  along with film-based images.
Officials at Cornell and USC said they will explore the use of
different disc formats for different applications as the project
progresses.  Both schools will create image databases, and will
study usage patterns to determine the most effective ways to make
images accessible to academic researchers.
Although the demonstration projects at Cornell and USC have
been designed as independent activities, both universities plan to
explore opportunities to exchange images and image libraries with
one another across the Internet, an on-line information network
that links researchers and students at universities and other
institutions worldwide.

"Brittle Books" Problem
Besides making images more accessible, Photo CD technology
may serve as a tool to preserve illustrated texts and other records
that are decaying on library shelves.
About 80 percent of the books published since 1850 and stored
in American libraries are printed on acidic paper that will harden
and crumble over time, the Commission on Preservation and
Access estimates.  In fact, 25-30 percent of these books are already
dangerously brittle.  The U.S. Library of Congress and other
institutions have been working for years on ways to de-acidify the
paper in these books, but the technology is not yet practical for
mass applications.


The Commission serves on behalf of the nationUs libraries,
archives and universities to develop and encourage collaborative
strategies for preserving and providing access to the accumulated
human record.  As part of this effort, the Commission has been
engaged in catalyzing and supporting a nationwide program
administered by the National Endowment for the Humanities to
save 3 million brittle books over the next 20 years  -  by conserving
the most valuable records in their original form, and by preserving
the rest using alternatives such as microfilm and digital technology.
"WeUre enthusiastic about the opportunity to explore the
potential of the Photo CD process as a medium for preserving
illustrated texts," Commission President Patricia Battin said.  "It
appears likely to offer a combination of image quality, accessibility
and affordability previously unavailable in a digital medium for
illustrated color imagery and oversized materials.  If the
demonstration succeeds, Photo CD technology could become one of
the key elements in a comprehensive strategy to preserve records
for future generations."
Cornell and USC are part of an informal consortium of
institutions studying digital preservation options, using seed
money provided by the Commission.  Other member institutions
include Harvard, Penn State, Princeton, Stanford, Tennessee and
Yale.

Color Images at Cornell
At Cornell University, Photo CD technology will be used to
enhance access to the worldUs largest collection of work from Louis
Agassiz Fuertes (1874-1927).  Fuertes  -  a lifelong resident of Ithaca,
N.Y., where Cornell is located  -  was an accomplished
ornithologist recognized by other ornithologists as this countryUs
greatest painter of birds, superior even to Audubon in his ability to
capture their beauty and make them appear truly lifelike.
In the initial phase of the demonstration project, Cornell will
scan photographs of a substantial portion of its Fuertes collection  -
which includes over 1,000 pictures (watercolors, oils, chalk
drawings and pencil and pen-and-ink sketches), 500 photographs,
and 10,000 pages of notes and letters  -  onto Photo CD discs.  The
university will create an image database that will allow researchers
to access these images by a variety of search parameters, such as a
species of bird or artistic medium.

"We have to determine how to structure search parameters that
will make images accessible to all types of users, from art students
to zoologists" said H. Thomas Hickerson, director of rare and
manuscript collections for the Cornell University Libraries.  "In
addition, we have to supply enough contextual information to
make the image useful when accessed through an electronic
network."
Researchers are likely to use the benefits of on-line image
collections in two ways, Hickerson said.  In some cases, the digital
file will replace the need to see an original  -  all the information a
researcher needs can be obtained by viewing images on-screen or
making prints.  In others, researchers may conduct an on-line
search to preview the holdings of one or more repositories, and
then determine exactly which items need to be seen in person.
M. Stuart Lynn, vice president for information technologies at
Cornell, said that the demonstration project will combine the
collection management experience of its library system with the
technological capabilities of its information network and computer
departments.
"Institutions like Cornell have a variety of collections of
artwork, artifacts, maps and other records of academic value that
are not generally as well-cataloged or as easily accessible as library
books," Lynn said.  "WeUre very excited about the prospect of Photo
CD technology for digitally capturing these images and providing
improved access through the convenience of digital distribution.
"WeUre also attracted by the potential advantages of the Photo
CD system as a consumer technology," Lynn added.  "There are
interesting possibilities in being able to view images on home TV
sets as well as on desktop computers."


Images of Southern California at USC
USCUs initial activities will focus on thousands of historical
photographs from the UniversityUs Regional History Collection in
the Department of Special Collections at the University Library.
These black-and-white images, some dating back to 1860, document
the history and development of Southern California and the
Southwest.  The USC photographic archives include materials from
a number of collections, including The Hearst Collection, California
Historical Society Collection, and the "Dick" Whittington
Collection, among others.
The photographs in the USC collection are used by a variety of
researchers, including historians studying the development of
Southern California, design and architecture specialists interested
in the changing character of Los Angeles over the past 100 years,
documentary film makers such as Ken and Ric Burns, and
designers and producers in the entertainment industry who study
photographs in the USC collections to create accurate costumes and
sets for such movies as "Bugsy."
"Image collections are an important component of the USC
Library holdings," said Peter Lyman, university librarian at USC.
"Although images have great value in teaching and research, their
usefulness has been limited by the difficulty of organizing
photographic collections, the vulnerability of photographs to
damage, and the absence of an inexpensive medium for
reproducing images and integrating them into other work.  Photo
CD products offer us an important new technology for preserving
our collection and also expanding access."
Kenneth C. Green, director of The James Irvine Foundation
Center for Scholarly Technology at USC, explained that the
photographs will be scanned onto Photo CD discs to create an on-
line image database for researchers.  The discs may be stored in the
Kodak Professional Photo CD Image Library  -  a "jukebox" that
holds up to 100 Photo CD discs, allowing users to retrieve images
from any disc in a few seconds.

"One of the benefits of working with Photo CD technology is
that Kodak offers so many components of an integrated solution,"
Green said.  "Universities, like big corporations, are striving to
achieve the benefits of distributed access and networked printing.
Along with the core Photo CD technology, Kodak offers jukeboxes,
printers, software and other products that integrate very well."
Lyman and Green said they believe that this demonstration
project with Cornell will be watched closely by other institutions.
"This pilot project is extremely important, not just to USC but to the
entire academic community," Lyman said.  "The Photo CD
technology is impressive and we see key opportunities to use it to
enhance access and preserve image collections in a wide range of
academic endeavors."

Customers interested in more information may call the Kodak
Information Center at 1-800-242-2424, ext. 77.

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(Kodak is a trademark.)