Behind the Scenes at the California Digital Library

In the early days of “digital libraries”, there were a number of high-profile, grant-funded initiatives that explored this concept, largely in a theoretical way. The California Digital Library was one of the first practical digital libraries and has evolved and matured over the last two decades. As one of the few remaining people who were involved from “before the beginning”, I will reflect on why CDL was formed, how it has met various challenges, and what a “digital library” may mean in the future.