Tangent Engineering Inc. of Englewood, Colo., donated a large-format, flatbed color scanner and printing system. It can scan flat items up to 24 by 34 inches at resolutions of up to 600 dots per inch and in 24-bit color. This equipment will be used in the post-processing of maps scanned by the division. Other companies participating in the Center for Geographic Information will also donate software and expertise to help develop effective methods for scanning and disseminating the Library's maps. The development of a graphic interface to facilitate the selection of maps covering a user-defined portion of the earth's surface is vital to the successful scanning of maps.
Considerable work remains to be done to design such an interface.
But working with the National Digital Library Program, the geographic and cartographic community and the Library's Information Technology Services, the division will be able to meet these challenges and share its rich collections widely. The Dec. 8 events were sponsored by many of the most important institutions working on issues relating to access to digital information. Many believe it is one of the most important features of our democracy. The image of a lonely nerd in front of a computer screen is a de-formation of the idea of a gathering place. The Library's National Digital Library Program is designed to stimulate users to go back to books to find information to supplement their on-line research.