The Infinite Library

 

By Wade Roush /

©2005, MIT Technology Review.

Distributed by Tribune Media Services International.

 

 

Does Google’s plan to digitize millions of print books spell the death of libraries – or their rebirth?

 

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Search-engine giant Google announced ambitious plans earlier this year to expand its “Google Print” service by converting the full text of millions of library books into searchable Web pages. At the time of the announcement, Google had already signed up five partners: the libraries at Oxford, Harvard, Stanford, and the University of Michigan, along with the New York Public Library.

 

Most librarians and archivists were ecstatic about the announcement. Others believe Google’s efforts will force libraries to reexamine their commitment to spreading knowledge freely. “Some librarians are very concerned about the terms of access and … that a commercial entity will have control over materials that libraries have collected,” says Abby Smith, director of programs for the Council on Library and Information Resources.

 

Impact on publishing

 

Publishers and authors count on strict copyright laws to prevent copying and reuse of their intellectual property until after they’ve recouped their investments. Libraries, however, enjoy something of an exemption from copyright law. Now the mass digitization of library books threatens to make their content just as portable — or piracyprone — as digital music.

 

The Google initiative has also amplified a long-standing debate over how to guarantee the fullest possible access to digitized books, including those still under copyright. Under the Google model, only snippets from these books will be viewable on the Web, unless their authors and publishers agree otherwise. The stakes are high, both for Google and the library community. The technologies and business agreements being framed now will have a far-reaching impact.

 

A massive project

 

Making a wealth of information searchable is where Google’s resources will make a difference. Google has already copied and indexed some 8 billion Web pages. This achievement lends credibility to its claim that it can, in a matter of years, digitize a big chunk of the 60 million volumes held by the five partner libraries.

Vocabulary Focus

spell (v) [spel] to signify or indicate, especially that something bad will happen in the future

ecstatic (adj) [eks5tAtik] extremely happy

entity (n) [5entiti] something that exists apart from other things, having its own independent existence

recoup (v) [ri5ku:p] to get back something, especially money, that one has spent or lost

stakes (n pl) [steiks] the amount of something, especially money, that one risks on the result of something

 

Specialized Terms

archivist (n) 档案管理员 a person whose job is to take care of archives, a collection of historical records

intellectual property (n) 知识产权 someone’s idea, invention, creation, etc., which has commercial value and is usually protected in some way

无限图书馆

许美鸾 译

 

Google 打算将数百万册图书数字化 ，此举意味着图书馆的终结还是重生？

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搜索引擎巨擘 Google 今年初宣布将扩展“Google 印刷品”服务，他们的雄心壮志是把数百万册图书馆藏书的全部内文转换成可搜索的网页。宣布当时，Google 已经和5个合作伙伴签约：牛津大学、哈佛大学、斯坦福大学和密歇根大学的图书馆，以及纽约公共图书馆。

大多数图书馆员和档案管理员对这一宣布欣喜若狂，但其它人则认为 Google 的做法将迫使图书馆重新审视它们免费传播知识的责任。“一些图书馆员很关心使用数据的条件以及……一个企业实体得以操控图书馆搜集的数据的事实。”图书馆与信息资源委员会计划部门主管艾比·史密斯说。

 

冲击出版业

出版商及作者在完全回收所做的投资之前，都依赖严格的著作权法来阻止盗版及知识产权被重复使用。然而，图书馆享有著作权法的豁免权。如今图书馆藏书大量数字化，很可能使它们的内容像数字音乐一样可随身携带，却也易于盗用。

Google的计划也突显了长久以来一直存在的一个争议，就是如何保证阅读数字书籍的渠道畅通无阻，包括那些仍有版权的书籍。依照Google的模式，除非作者及出版商同意，否则在网络上只能读到有版权书籍的片段。对 Google 和图书馆界而言，这个计划的风险甚高。目前正在研究和拟定的技术及商业协议将会产生深远的影响。

 

庞大计划

Google 的资源会带来的正面影响是得以搜索丰富的信息。Google 宣称有能力在几年内，把5座合作图书馆6000万册的巨量藏书数字化。它已将约80亿的网页复制并编入索引，这项成就使前述说法更为可信。