On Wed, 26 Jul 2006, Jon Noring wrote:
Both Catherine and I are perplexed by the lack of public discussion about the WeBF on the various ebook-related forums such as this one. What are your thoughts?
Ok, since you ask, I'll share my viewpoint. I think that most PG volunteers are aware that PG texts are widely reused, reformatted, and re-presented, on many websites (and sometimes in print, as well). The WEBF can be seen as just one more of these instances. And yes, I know that it also contains many texts from other collections. For years there has been thousands of other texts online that cannot be found in PG. Again, the WEBF is just one more of these instances. What I do give it credit for is good marketing. It's like putting up a big sign saying: "Free for a limited time only!" and giving away material which you can find freely any time you want. However, for some people, that might be the best way to get their interest. It certainly does fit into Michael Hart's vision of giving away as many eBooks as possible to as many people as possible in as many ways as possible. Andrew