Bit strange to hear Brand waxing so charitable about about a system that uses DRM, given his EFF credentials, but so it goes.
The Internet Archive reports:
Checking out digital versions of books that are automatically returned after two weeks is as easy as logging onto the Internet Archive’s Open Library site, announced digital librarian and Internet Archive founder Brewster Kahle. By integrating this new service, more than seventy thousand current books – best sellers and popular titles – are borrowable by patrons of libraries that subscribe to Overdrive.com's Digital Library Reserve. Additionally, many other books that are not commercially available but are still of interest to library patrons, are available to be borrowed from participating libraries using the same digital technology.
According to Kahle, "Digital technologies promise increased access to both old and new books. The Internet Archive, through its OpenLibrary.org site, is thrilled to be adding the capacity to lend newer books over the internet, in addition to continuing to provide the public with all access, free downloadable older materials.” He added, "We expect the number of books in the digital lending library to grow annually."
Article on this in the Wall Street Journal, and WSJ video.
Currently, OpenLibrary.org is making available:
- More than one million digital versions of older books are now available for free download in a variety of formats.
- Over 70,000 current digital books to those with a library card from many of the over 11,000 libraries that subscribe to the OverDrive service.
- Genealogical books from the Boston Public Library.
- How-to and technical book collection via the Internet Archive.
- Marine life reference materials from the Marine Biological Laboratory and Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution in Woods Hole, Massachusetts.
- Spanish texts from Universidad Francisco Marroquín in Guatemala.
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