Shout out to the fantastic https://standardebooks.org, who take transcriptions from @gutenberg_org and beautify them with quality cover art and professional formatting. For free! Even more impressive, their whole site and build process is hosted on a single core, 2GB VPS as documented by Alex Cabal https://alexcabal.com/posts/standard-ebooks-and-classic-web-tech
#StandardEbooks #ebooks #ebooksforall #ebookstodon #projectgutenberg #softwareminimalism
"Libraries have generally proven reluctant to use their power to shape the demand curve and shift digital budgets away from expensive Big 5 bestsellers, even when it means sacrificing diversity and depth in their own digital collections."
Following up on yesterday's post, I wanted to expand on the topic a bit more without the pressure of representing the day job, so I hit the blog.
#libraries #publishing #EbooksForAll
https://loudpoet.com/2024/01/17/on-library-ebook-licenses-patron-demand-and-power-dynamics/
What is an equitable hold ratio for a bestseller vs. a midlist title? More importantly, how does a library prioritize which readers deserve equitable access to ebooks, and which ones don't?
Spoiler: Fair licensing terms are only part of the puzzle.
If you're in NYC next Friday, catch me participating in this provocatively titled in-person event, Exploring the Anti-Ownership Ebook Economy, attempting to be a voice of reason while discussing the "Economics of Ebook Publisher/Platform Workflows."
There's no livestream but there will apparently be an audio feed available after the event. Full program and more details at the link.
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/exploring-the-anti-ownership-ebook-economy-tickets-668163594297
☝🏽 Listening to this on my run, I can't tell how much was tweaked, but it's still overly reliant on opinionated interviews without any fact-checking. It presents naive overviews of the music industry, ebook production and distribution, and how public libraries actually work, while frequently conflating the Internet Archive and traditional public libraries.
Bizarrely, it even manages to create several moments of sympathy for publishers?!? 😐
More from Alabanese:
"IA does not reproduce the Works in Suit to provide criticism, commentary, or information about them. IA’s e-books do not 'add something new, with a further purpose or different character, altering the with new expression, meaning or message.' IA simply scans the Works in Suit to become e-books and lends them to users of its website for free." Hon. John G. Koeltl
#libraries #publishing #EbooksForAll #DigitalRightsForLibraries
After nearly three years of litigation, federal judge John G. Koeltl has ruled that the Internet Archive infringed the copyrights of four plaintiff publishers by scanning print editions of their books and lending them online. The ruling comes just days after a March 20 hearing, during which the judge sounded deeply skeptical of the Internet Archive's defense.
"If Judge John G. Koeltl’s questions are any indication, the Internet Archive is facing an uphill battle."
Albanese is one of a few industry journalists I trust to understand the nuances of thorny issues they write about, and his coverage of yesterday's events suggest things did not go well for the Internet Archive.
Hubris is a bitch, and as always, the collateral damage could be extensive. 😠
#libraries #publishing #EbooksForAll #DigitalRightsForLibraries
Judge John G. Koeltl appears unmoved by the Internet Archives's fair use claims and unconvinced that publishers’ market for library e-books is not impacted by the practice known as controlled digital lending.
Jill Minor
@richh has moved
Guy LeCharles Gonzalez (MOVED)
Jill Minor