The Royal Library of the Netherlands (KB) in The Hague is digitising its historic newspaper archives to make them accessible worldwide. Dawn Technology contributed to the development of kranten.kb.nl, an online platform containing millions of newspaper articles that can be searched within seconds.
Between 2007 and 2010, the Royal Library set out to digitise and publish eight million historical newspaper pages, covering the period from 1618 to 1995.
The scale of the project was immense. More than 250 terabytes of data needed not only to be stored but also made instantly accessible to researchers, historians and the general public.
The key requirements included:
To achieve these goals, the Royal Library needed a technology partner with deep PHP expertise and extensive experience in complex data architectures. That partner was Dawn Technology.
We strengthened the project team with advanced PHP expertise and worked side by side with the Royal Library’s internal developers. Together, we created a sophisticated web platform that enables users to search millions of articles in just a few seconds.
One of the project's most innovative technical achievements was the development of the zoom and highlighting functionality. This included integrating an advanced image viewer and a dynamic highlighting engine that visually marks search results within newspaper articles and page layouts.
The solution links OCR text, coordinate files and search terms to their exact locations within digitised newspaper pages, all generated dynamically and in real time. This allows users to immediately see search results in their original historical context.
The collaboration resulted in what became the largest digital newspaper archive in the world. Visitors can freely search through millions of articles spanning centuries of Dutch history and retrieve relevant information within seconds.
Our contribution extended beyond technology alone. We also helped strengthen the Royal Library’s internal capabilities through knowledge transfer, training programmes and the development of a reusable software library that supports future digital initiatives.
The result is a sustainable partnership that accelerates the Royal Library’s digital mission while providing a future-proof foundation for preserving and sharing cultural heritage.
What our clients say
“Dawn Technology brought PHP expertise to the project that we did not have in-house. They are highly skilled and always up to date with the latest developments. In addition, they contribute a wealth of experience gained from complex projects for other clients. They helped us particularly with technical expertise and creative solutions to make the web platform as clear and user-friendly as possible.”
The Netherlands Statistics Office (CBS) wanted to modernise the Youth Monitor, an online platform that presents statistics and insights about young people in the Netherlands. Dawn Technology developed the new website: accessible, intuitive and fully optimised for mobile use.
The coronavirus pandemic was the first pandemic where IT played a crucial role in fighting the virus. The Dutch Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport developed several apps that played a key role in policy to prevent the spread. To achieve this, the ministry relied on expertise both within and outside the government, including ours.
Like the Royal Library, organisations worldwide are looking for ways to unlock large datasets in a fast, secure and user-friendly manner. Leave your details and our specialists will be happy to explore the possibilities with you.
