D-Lib Magazine November/December 2008

Volume 14 Number 11/12 ISSN 1082-9873

"Annotation: from paper books to the digital library" Catherine C. Marshall Xerox Corporation3333 Coyote Hill Road Palo Alto, CA 94304 marshall@parc.xerox.com

ABSTRACT Readers annotate paper books as a routine part of their engagement with the materials; it is a useful practice,manifested through a wide variety of markings made inservice of very different purposes. This paper examines the practice of annotation in a particular situation: the markingsstudents make in university-level textbooks. The study focuses on the form and function of these annotations, and their status within a community of fellow textbook readers.Using this study as a basis, I discuss issues and implications for the design of annotation tools for a digital library setting.

KEYWORDS:Annotation, markings, study, digital libraryreading tools, annotation systems design.