This paper contains an exploration of the functionality and uses of two digital libraries of manuscript collections; Manuscriptorium and Digital Gazi Husrev Bey Library in Sarajevo. Manuscriptorium is a digital repository that offers access to the largest collection of digitized manuscripts in Europe, while the Digital Gazi Husrev Bey Library is the institution with the largest number of manuscripts in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The reason for the evaluation and comparison of the aforementioned digital libraries is the fact that the manuscript collections of both repositories are different in origin; The Manuscriptorium mainly contains manuscript collections in European languages, written in Latin script, while the Digital Gazi Husrev Bey Library includes collections of oriental manuscripts, written in Arabic script.
The study shows that both libraries meet most of the IFLA (2014) and UNESCO (2003) standards when it comes to digitizing manuscript material and providing access to digital collections online. The main goal of these standards is to make the digital library easy to use and to enable the user to participate in the process of creating and operating the digital library, through optimal manipulation and inclusion of various user-friendly functions.
Also, the research indicated to different approaches in the design and operation of the interfaces of these libraries, as well as the options for searching, browsing, navigating and displaying search results in them.
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