Viewer

Mirador: The Optimal Open-Source Viewer for IIIF Image Comparison and Analysis

Introduction In Digital Humanities research, comparing and examining multiple materials side by side is a common practice. A high-performance image viewer is essential for tasks such as comparing different manuscripts or examining artworks before and after restoration. This article introduces Mirador, a IIIF-compatible image viewer jointly developed by Stanford University and Harvard University. What is Mirador? Mirador is a web-based image viewer compatible with IIIF (International Image Interoperability Framework). Its most distinctive feature is its multi-window interface, which allows users to open multiple windows simultaneously to compare images. ...

March 15, 2026 · 3 min · Nakamura

Universal Viewer: The Definitive IIIF-Compliant Multimedia Viewer

Introduction In the world of digital archives, there is a growing need for systems that can uniformly display diverse media types — not just images, but also audio, video, and 3D models. IIIF (International Image Interoperability Framework) is an international standard specification for achieving interoperability of such digital content. This article introduces Universal Viewer (UV), an open-source multimedia viewer that is fully compliant with IIIF. What is Universal Viewer? Universal Viewer is a web-based viewer that loads IIIF manifests to display digital content such as images, audio, video, and 3D models. It is published under the MIT License and is adopted by libraries, museums, and universities worldwide. ...

March 15, 2026 · 3 min · Nakamura

Mirador: A Feature-Rich IIIF Viewer for Comparing and Annotating Images

What Is Mirador? Mirador is an open-source image viewer built for the IIIF (International Image Interoperability Framework) ecosystem. Released under the MIT license, it is widely adopted by universities, libraries, museums, and archives worldwide, including Harvard, Stanford, and Yale. Mirador’s defining feature is its multi-window workspace, which allows users to display, compare, and analyze multiple images side by side. It has become an essential tool for Digital Humanities research and cultural heritage digital archives. ...

March 14, 2026 · 4 min · Nakamura

Tify: A Lightweight, Fast IIIF Document Viewer

Introduction In the fields of digital archives and digital humanities, choosing the right IIIF (International Image Interoperability Framework) viewer is a critical decision. While feature-rich viewers like Mirador and Universal Viewer (UV) are widely used, there are many situations where a lighter, faster-loading viewer is preferable. This is where Tify comes in. Tify is a lightweight, fast IIIF document viewer developed primarily by the Goettingen State and University Library (SUB Goettingen) in Germany. ...

March 14, 2026 · 4 min · Nakamura

Universal Viewer: A Multi-Format IIIF Viewer for Images, Audio, Video, and 3D

What Is Universal Viewer? Universal Viewer (UV) is an open-source viewer built on the IIIF (International Image Interoperability Framework) standards. As its name suggests, its defining characteristic is universality: it can display images, audio, video, 3D models, and PDFs through a single unified interface. It is released under the MIT license and implemented in TypeScript. While Mirador is perhaps the most well-known IIIF viewer, Universal Viewer stands out through its broad media format support. You can explore various content types on the examples page. ...

March 14, 2026 · 4 min · Nakamura