Re: [gutvol-d] [BP] The Future of eBooks
brad said:
But this won't be of any help to brick and mortar libraries who want to integrate PG etexts into their existing catalogs.
why is this a priority of any kind? but perhaps i don't understand. just precisely what would it mean for a "brick and mortar library" to "integrate" this e-library into their catalog? that if i walk into the place and go to the catalog to look for a book, it will tell me that it's available online? d'uh, next time i'll stay home, and search google. why should a brick-and-mortar library want this? i thought the goal here was to create a global library, one that is available 24/7 from anyplace in the world, with millions of books that are never "unavailable" because they are "checked out" or "mis-shelved" or "awaiting reshelving" or "going through re-binding" or because "this branch has never had a copy of that book, sorry, you'll have to go to the main library downtown." am i the one who's not seeing things clearly? or are you?
The catalog as it stands represents a lot more effort than a lot of people realize. I hope people keep that in mind when they slam the existing catalog.
i agree. conversely, there's something perverse about giving people "credit" for working in a way that is clearly not efficient or productive... i could spend hours and hours and hours making a flyer, for instance, telling people how wonderful project gutenberg is, a flyer that would produce little effect out in the world. would you pat me on the back? or would you suggest instead that there is a better use for my energy? i humbly and respectfully suggest there is a better use for your energy. -bowerbird
Bowerbird@aol.com writes:
brad said:
But this won't be of any help to brick and mortar libraries who want to integrate PG etexts into their existing catalogs.
why is this a priority of any kind?
but perhaps i don't understand. just precisely what would it mean for a "brick and mortar library" to "integrate" this e-library into their catalog?
that if i walk into the place and go to the catalog to look for a book, it will tell me that it's available online? d'uh, next time i'll stay home, and search google. why should a brick-and-mortar library want this?
Are you kidding? Check any of the major online catalogs. They all try to integrate records for electronic works. The ISBD spends a very large amount of spec-space on how to format records for electronic formated works. I'm sorry, I live in SE Asia, and the libraries I've visited in Hong Kong, Thailand, Malaysia, Japan and Singapore and mainland China--even the smaller libraries have terminals which provide an electronic catalog. The rows of wooden drawers with paper catalog cards are still there but most people use the computer catalog. I haven't been back to the States much in the last 15 years but when I have I always spend time in some University library. They all use online catalogs. A growing number of brick and mortar libraries are now adding etexts to their collections. Sometimes they only provide links to websites but often they are local copies of the etexts which correspond to their catalog entry.
i thought the goal here was to create a global library, one that is available 24/7 from anyplace in the world, with millions of books that are never "unavailable" because they are "checked out" or "mis-shelved" or "awaiting reshelving" or "going through re-binding" or because "this branch has never had a copy of that book, sorry, you'll have to go to the main library downtown."
The goal here is to create etexts which can be used anywhere--in your home, in a high school, in a public library as well as over the Internet. A remote library in northern India may not be able to afford the bandwidth to download PG texts. But they can provide access to a CDROM collection of the PG texts. Librarians would love to be able to say "all copies have been checked out, but the etext is available in pdf, html and plain text"
am i the one who's not seeing things clearly? or are you?
I think what I'm seeing and saying is very clear. MARC is the present standard for the vast majority of bibliographic data for libraries. Libraries fill a very real need for their communities which will change over time but will not vanish because of the Internet. I'd like to hear one good reason why the catalog shouldn't be available in as many different formats as is needed for everyone to find and access PG texts? b/ -- Brad Collins <brad@chenla.org>, Bangkok, Thailand
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Bowerbird＠aol.com -
Brad Collins