Abstract

The current information landscape has created new opportunities for digital libraries to assist with important scholarly functions outside of simple search and discovery. Digital collections must become a community space for 
use and reuse of digital objects,
 a space that helps make connections between information types and sources, and provide opportunities for others to build services upon. The author examines how
 improved interface
 design 
might
 provide
 users
 with 
options 
outside 
of 
simple 
text-based 
searching 
to
 aid 
their
 research and accomplish scholarly objectives as defined by John Unsworth. This paper explores ways of designing interfaces to facilitate these functions while examining and assessing current digital library implementations and software tools to help support the central ideas proposed within.