The National Agricultural Library (NAL) Launches the NAL Digital Repository (NALDR)
The National Agricultural Library (NAL) has launched the NAL Digital Repository (NALDR), providing convenient access to the full text of selected USDA publications. http://naldr.nal.usda.gov/
The NALDR contains a wide variety of publications that have been digitized by NAL. One example is the Yearbook of the United States Department of Agriculture, which was published from 1864 to 1992. The Yearbook provides statistical information and comprehensive surveys of particular subjects important to agriculture and in its later years covered more popular topics of interest to both urban and rural audiences. The volumes for 1894 through 1914 are currently available in the repository and the remaining volumes will be added later in 2006.
The NALDR offers several features that facilitate searching and access. For example:
The scanned publications have been processed so that the text is fully searchable. Search keywords are highlighted wherever they are found in the full text display. The image files are compressed for quick loading to the Web. The first page loads and then the user has the option to view the complete publication or article.
There is a printing/downloading option that converts the images to the commonly used Portable Document Format (PDF).
Each publication in the repository has a corresponding record in the NAL Catalog and Article Citation Database (AGRICOLA). By linking from the AGRICOLA record to the full text, NAL offers users an additional way to identify and retrieve publications.
Publications are added on an ongoing basis--check the Spotlights section of the home page for information on new additions. Online access to selected USDA publications is now just a click away! http://naldr.nal.usda.gov/
Information via the USAIN-L LIstserv