[gweekly] Selected eBook MARC Records To Be Tested

[Michael Hart]

You Can Be Part of the Selection Process

Project Gutenberg Would Like YOUR Library
to Join Our MARC Record Testing Program


You and your library can choose the eBooks in
this testing program, and can make sure eBook
MARC records for these eBooks meet your staff
requirements for MARC records.

Please read on for the details.

***

I have been giving CDs and DVDs to librarians
and library directors for some years now, and
I have yet to see one of them placed for use.

On the other hand, I receive emails from some
librarians, and meet others, who tell me they
have acquired Project Gutenberg eBooks and CD
or DVD releases and put them on the shelves--
on their own--without any prompting.

Sometimes this reminds me of my efforts to do
something to get modern eBooks into a Project
Gutenberg release, and then it turns out that
those authors I approach are unwilling, but I
also find that there are those who come to us
on their own, asking us to include them.

Therefore, I would like to do one feasibility
study to start with, perhaps in several parts
to optimize the study to determine how much a
set of MARC records would improve circulation
of Project Gutenberg eBooks.

To that end, I would like to recruit some 100
librarians and patrons who will be willing to
take some pre-arranged collection of eBooks &
MARC records to accompany them to libraries.

Then perhaps we can see how many libraries in
general we might be able to expect to include
Project Gutenberg eBooks if we included these
MARC records with them.  We might also ask to
hear how many of these who did include eBooks
in their collections would have done so if an
inclusion of MARC records were not available.

This study's plan is to create collections of
eBooks of sizes of perhaps from several dozen
to several hundred to perhaps even thousands,
for the three parts of this study, before the
choice is made to create MARC records for all
of the Project Gutenberg eBooks in prescribed
formats suggested by the study's outcome.

If you are willing to take one of our sets of
eBooks to your local libraries, schools, etc.
please let me know.


Thanks!!!


Michael


Give FreeBooks!!!
In 39 Languages!!!

As of January 25, 2005
~15,150 FreeBooks at:
~ 4,850 to go to 20,000
http://www.gutenberg.org
http://www.gutenberg.net

We are ~51% of the way
from 10,000 to 20,000.

We are ~3% of the way
from 15,000 to 20,000.


Now even more PG eBooks

In 104 Languages!!!
http://gutenberg.cc
http://gutenberg.us

Michael S. Hart
<hart at pobox.com>
Project Gutenberg
Executive Coordinator^M
"*Internet User ~#100*"

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