March 10, 2010
Italy embraces library digitization
The Italian government has signed a deal with Google to put the contents of two national libraries on the internet.From the BBC.Up to one million antiquarian books - including works by Dante, Machiavelli and Galileo - will be scanned and made available free on Google Books.
There is no copyright issue as all the works were published before 1868.
The Italian authorities welcomed the scheme as budget pressures have cut the amount that can be spent on preserving the collections in Rome and Florence.
Posted by David on March 10, 2010 9:31 PM
The greater access that this will provide is fantastic but I worry about the possibility of digitizing books in lieu of preserving the physical objects. Books are more than just the data they contain, they are tangible history with every bit the value of a work of art or historical artifact.
Posted by: Thomas on March 11, 2010 9:55 PM
Just think of never being held hostage at the circulation desk again!
Posted by: Michael Tinkler on March 12, 2010 7:44 AM
Thomas,
I agree, actually, the only sure method of preserving texts for future generations is by conserving the books that contain them,digital or other forms of electronic storage are not reliable in the long term. Even today, scientists can't retrieve some data recorded in the 1960s because either the appropriate software or hardware has been lost.
Posted by: Russell W on March 14, 2010 6:03 PM
gmail.com