Welcome

The fifth annual Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) Web-Wise Conference will be held March 3-5, 2004 in Chicago, IL.

This year the conference will be co-hosted by the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC) and will be held at the Hotel InterContinental on North Michigan Avenue, in Chicago, IL. The theme of this year's conference is "Sharing Digital Resources."

IMLS has been funding digitization projects since 1998. Sessions will highlight outstanding digital projects that are pushing the boundaries of digitization projects, as well as national leaders exploring key infrastructure issues that are currently being explored by projects. Demonstrations during the long 45-minute breaks between plenary sessions will give participants an opportunity to see Web sites of successful online projects and talk with project staff. One set of demos will focus on implementations of the Open Archives Initiative.

Registration for Web-Wise 2004 is limited in order to facilitate discussion and networking among participants. There is no registration fee; however, participants will be responsible for their own travel and lodging expenses. The Hotel InterContinental Chicago is centrally located in Chicago's North Loop area, with easy access to museums, restaurants, and nightlife.

Continental breakfasts will be provided March 4 and 5, and lunch will be provided on March 4. An opening reception will be held at The Field Museum on the evening of March 3, 2004. IMLS National Leadership Grant recipients are encouraged to attend the Web-Wise conference. Grantees may charge travel expenses to their grants if sufficient travel funds are available.

The 2004 Web-Wise conference is co-sponsored by the Institute of Museum and Library Services, the UIC University Library and a group of local Chicago cultural institutions including The Chicago Botanic Garden, The Chicago Multi-type Library System, and The Field Museum of Natural History.

Web-Wise 2004 Pre-Conference:

This year two half-day pre-conferences on the Open Archives Initiative will be held. Each is a half-day on March 3.

The morning session will feature Tim Cole and Sarah Shreeves, both from University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign, discussing the OAI harvesting project methodology.

In the afternoon session Priscilla Caplan, Florida Center for Library Automation, and Robin Dale, RLG, will discuss issues related to digital preservation.

Registration for the pre-conferences is free but required. Register for either one or both of the pre-conferences by clicking the "Registration" link on the top left side of this page.

Breakfast and lunch will also be provided for all participants in the full pre-conference day, March 3; breakfast will be provided for those participating only in the morning session and lunch will be provided to those participating only in the afternoon session.