We wish to encourage a more detailed consideration of the importance of collaboration in a digital library. We believe that it will be a powerful means of improving the effectiveness of digital libraries for a wide range of users. As librarians have noted for some time, physical libraries are places that have a distinct social dimension. Interactions include short conversations like those that occur at a help or information desk as well as the much studied reference interview. Users interacting with each other.
Libraries are public spaces.
People arrange to meet there, bump into acquaintances and colleagues and can learn from each other by observing how others use the library's resources, or by asking them for help. Users may choose to learn how to use systems by asking friends and colleagues for help instead of approaching librarians. With the increasing trend towards group projects as part of learning, teams may meet and collectively search for and discuss findings in the library, or remotely. Our concern is that much of the development of digital library systems will proceed with the implicit assumption that the typical user will be the classic stereotype of the lonely scholar, resenting the need to share resources with other users and dreaming of the pristine virtual library where all other users are as far as possible rendered invisible. We want to emphasise the advantages that can accrue from collaboration in helping users efficiently to find out what they want.