The Arms and Lesk readings focus on mark-up languages, character coding sets (ASCII and Unicode), and text conversion. Even though the chapters were written several years apart from each other, there were still some agreements between the two. Both talked about the disadvantages of OCR systems. While the technology has developed enough that the cost Arms discussed has dropped, Lesk still holds that the error-finding, especially on old and worn items, can be quite time consuming.
Lesk also dove into more modern digital library issues, like the simple fact that some people just don't want to read on a computer screen. Since this piece is about 8 years old, it doesn't cover the newer developments in e-reading technology including e-ink. E-ink appears like ink on a page and is much less strenuous on the eyes than a backlit screen. Still, the patron has to either own the device or borrow one from the library, both of which can cause problems not found with traditionally printed materials.
The other two readings by Lynch and Peskin cover digital identifiers in detail. Lynch wrote about systems as whole while Peskin zoomed in on the DOI system. I hadn't actually read anything on DOI in detail up until this point and I enjoyed the opportunity to learn about its history and development. It seemed as though those creating the DOI system had read Lynch's article in a way. They made sure to cover many of the concerns that Lynch raises about new identifier systems.
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