Introduction

This introduction provides an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book focuses on case studies in which communities of practice are enabled or disadvantaged by the provision or lack of provision for digital technologies and infrastructures. These communities are not only disciplinary but can also involve entire faculties and education programs, exerting great influence on the trajectory of research that is possible within an institution, on academic careers, and the affordances within the classroom influencing students’ future prospects. The book describes what one might designate as a foundational digital humanities/library practice: that of employing graduate students in the library to collaborate in developing digital projects. It explores wider communities of practice, including how and to whom we disseminate and communicate our research, how digital projects find (or don’t find) their audiences, and in constructing digital identities.