Electronic theses and dissertation (ETD) repositories: What are they? Where do they come from? How do they work?

The purpose of this paper is to introduce the electronic theses and dissertation (ETD) repository as a subset of local institutional digital repositories. The paper discusses the originating institutions and organizations including Virginia Tech Initiative, the Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations, the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization and the United States Department of Education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]