Press Release
PILGRIMS LANDING PLACE IS IMMORTALIZED WITH AN OLIVE DIGITIZATION CONTRACT
DENVER, Colorado, 23 May 2006 - Provincetown Public Library located in Provincetown, Massachusetts, has partnered with Olive Software to preserve its newspaper of record and to share its rich history with patrons across the world.
Very few places in the United States are as rich with historical and cultural importance as this small town on the east coast. This historic town boasts an artist colony that is almost a century old; served as the first landing place of the Pilgrims, and is the birthplace of the American Theater. These days Provincetown remains a home to an important marine port (Center for Coastal Studies) and the Cape Cod National Seashore and Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary. As a result, the local public library was constantly bombarded with a variety of inquiries. Some references could be located in the local newspaper, Provincetown Advocate, but the lack of indexing made it a timely and cumbersome task. That is why, the library opted for a cost effective digitization project that would preserve the look and feel of the original publication, while adding the extensive interactive capabilities that only Olive's digitization and archive solutions can provide.
Debra DeJonker-Berry, the head librarian, commented on the functionally of Olive's archive solution that was crucial during the decision making process: "We sought a product that would enhance our patrons' experience (such as email and print individual newspaper articles and highlight search terms), would be easy to use for internal staff and our readers, and had additional capabilities, such as a built in customizable thesaurus. The initial results are very encouraging, patrons are spending hours searching newspapers, immersing themselves in the historical past."
The original project involved microfilm digitization of the Provincetown Advocate between the years of 1931-1967, the second stage that will take place later on this year will encompass years prior to 1918 in hopes of preserving the fragile materials.
Kim Dail, VP Marketing Olive Software, summarized the endeavor by reconfirming Olive's pledge to accommodate digitization efforts around the world:" We are proud to be a part of historical preservation efforts. The Provincetown project solidifies librarians' commitment to increase accessibility of their digital assets, to promote and foster research, and to create future proof XML based archives."
Provincetown Public Library joins a growing number of newspapers and educational institutions across the world that are successfully utilizing Olive's solutions, among them The Oklahoman, The Reading Eagle, Penn State University, Gettysburg College, Oberlin College, and Kearney Public Library to name a few.
About Provincetown Public Library:
Founded in 1873 by Nathan Freeman, today, the Library's collection of 30,000+ volumes fills three floors, and the Library offers both traditional print resources and state of the art high speed internet access and databases. The Library opened its doors at the New Library in Spring 2006 at 356 Commercial Street.
The Library retains the Heritage Museum collection's model of the Rose Dorothea, a half-scale model of a Grand Banks Fishing Schooner in its Children's Room as well as the historic grand entrance staircases and magnificent vaulted ceiling.
A 62-foot-long half-scale model of a Grand Banks fishing schooner, the Rose Dorothea is built into the building's Second Floor and extends upward to the historic vaulted ceiling. In 1907, the Rose won the Boston-Gloucester Fisherman's Race that began in Provincetown, and was awarded the coveted Lipton Cup. The model is a tribute to the Town's nautical past and a work of countless hours of volunteer time from 15 local fishermen and craftsmen. It represents an historic period in Provincetown's rich history. The Children's Library has been designed to encircle the model, which is being used as a teaching tool.
As the Library continues to raise funds to complete the restoration of this magnificent building and expand into the Lower Level, the Library is open seven days a week, year-round serving students, scholars, general readers and visitors.
About Olive Software:
Olive is a world leader in XML automation technologies, bridging the gap between the paper past and digital future. Olive's technology transforms any document that was ever created from any source, while preserving every aspect of a document in an intelligent and open digital format. With Olive's technology, corporate organizations, for the first time, can communicate the right information, maintain security, deliver on demand and ensure ease of use and accessibility all proven possible with Olive's single XML based infrastructure.
Olive is a privately held company based in Santa Clara, California, with sales offices in Denver and New York and R&D facilities in Israel. For more information about Olive Software, please visit the company's website at Olive Software www.olivesoftware.com
Media Contacts:
Provincetown Library
Debra DeJonker-Berry
Librarian
Email: libdirector@provincetown-ma.gov
www.provincetown-ma.gov