In 1994, the government of Taiwan launched the National Information Infrastructure program in recognition of the widespread changes caused by the Internet to the way people communicate and handle information and knowledge. The ensuing cultural transitions have also hugely transformed the way of life and social structure in Taiwan. In the face of this transformation, digital preservation of the important cultural assets has become a major national topic.

The National Digital Archives Plan was approved at the 9th Electronics Information and Telecommunication Strategy (SRB) Conference of the Executive Yuan in July 1999 with the aim of building Internet content and preserving the cultural assets of Taiwan. This plan has been carried out by the National Science Council, with the National Central Library (NCL) and six other institutions selected as the first participating organizations.

The NCL plays an important function in preserving rare books and promoting the intellectual heritage of the people of Taiwan. As a national academic library, NCL has endeavored to maintain and build its rare book collection. One of the most pressing tasks facing the library today is to find ways to use digital technology to preserve these precious cultural archives.

Local documents serve the important roles of preserving local culture and historical data, while improving local understanding, providing a native learning resource, and building local awareness. These functions can be even better served by making these resources available to the public in digital form over the Internet.

Periodicals and newspapers are the most rapid media for conveying information and the results of research developments. They are also the most important media of recording recent developments in the humanities, social sciences and technology fields, making them the most frequently sought materials by readers across a broad spectrum of topics and languages. In the production of electronic publications, therefore, top priority should be given to periodicals and newspapers. In America, many electronic library plans aimed at digitizing periodicals, such as TULIP, CORE Project, and CIC Journal, have been setting the pace in the digitalization of full-text periodical content and in promoting online access to such content.