Users' perceived viability towards JAWI imprints digitization

Abstract

Jawi literature is recognized as a Malay literary heritage, a rare and scarce collection that resulted in a call for preservation. One of the promising ways of preservation today is the technology of digitization. To date, studies have been published on the digitization of Jawi literature primarily concerning Malay Jawi manuscripts collection. Meanwhile, the Jawi imprints were discussed far less frequently. Thus, this study brings users to the forefront of the research in assessing their perceptions on how viable digitization technology for Jawi imprints collection. The main objectives outlined are to: (i) investigate the usage status of the Jawi imprints collection, and to (ii) examine the perceptions of users towards the viability of digitization for Jawi imprints collection. This study employed a quantitative analysis and collected data from respondents through a questionnaire. A total of 225 responses were collected, of which only 213 fit the requirements of this study. The collected data was analyzed using SPSS software for descriptive and content analyses. The findings indicated that from users' perception, the digitization technology is viable for Jawi imprints collection, based on the measurement of their awareness, acceptance, and readiness. Further, the voluntary answers from respondents when they were asked to appraise any opinion that they wanted to add regarding the digitization of Jawi imprints collection have ascertained the importance to fulfil this effort together with lengthy commentaries. This study has contributed significantly to understanding the current status of the usage of Jawi imprints collection as well as users’ perceptions towards the viability of digitization for this collection. It can be used to guide the Jawi publishers, distributors, and related industrial players like libraries or specific Malay and Islamic libraries to better plan their collection development towards digitization. This user-response study hopes that it will provide a basis for the implementation of Jawi imprints digitization, or perhaps the establishment of Jawi imprints database in future.