LC will use Internet2’s high-bandwidth Abilene network for two major preservation projects. The first, the National Digital Newspaper Program, will create a digital resource of historically significant newspapers from every state and U.S. territory published between 1836 and 1922. A searchable database of the newspapers will be maintained at the library and accessible via the Web. The second is the National Digital Information Infrastructure and Preservation Program, a collaborative effort to collect and maintain archives of digital materials.
The Abilene network has a capacity of 10 gigabits per second, which the consortium says is more than 15,000 times faster than a typical home broadband connection. As a result, researchers on the network will be able to access the largest files in seconds, rather than minutes or hours.
“Internet2 provides the Library of Congress unique access to the research and education community, which shares its interest in providing students and researchers at all levels with the most comprehensive learning and information resources available,” said Internet2 President and CEO Doug Van Houweling.
Posted May 20, 2005.