[Web4lib] University of California's 100 Libraries Join Google Book-Scanning Project

[Karen Coyle]

Another question, one that doesn't relate only to UC: what about 
accessibility, in the ADA sense, to Google Books? I haven't seen much 
discussion of this, although I did find an article by someone who has 
collaborated with the National Association of the Blind and Dyslexic 
(who worked hard on e-book accessibility):
   http://www.benetech.org/about/whitepapers/*google*-access-022705.pdf

He argues that Google should make text available for each image that it 
displays if it wishes to give equal access to those with sight 
disabilities. This of course opens up the analog piracy box pretty wide, 
although the author of this paper advocates that disabled users be 
specially authorized for this access for books that are not in the 
public domain.

I would think that this becomes an issue for the public institutions due 
to the ADA requirements, but I don't know whether it applies to Google. 
I do recall that when I was at CDL the organization received occasional 
requests under ADA (from inside or outside of UC) for the full text of 
the UC Press books that were online. They would verify the user's status 
(no, I don't know how) and would generate a special copy of the full 
text of the book for the user. This could raise an interesting question 
about who owns the files -- that is, could Google be required to provide 
the full text of a book that it displays online as images? Could one of 
the universities be asked to supply the full text of a book of theirs 
that is displayed on Google?

Now that I've formulated the question, I may see if Mary Minow, over at 
librarylaw.com, has any ideas on this one.

kc

Leslie Johnston wrote:
> At 05:10 PM 8/9/2006, Karen Coyle wrote:
>
>>> Internet Archive founder Brewster Kahle told Cnet that while he was 
>>> pleased the university will continue to work with the OCA, he 
>>> criticized UC for "privatizing its library system" by agreeing to 
>>> Google's limitations on distributing and sharing copies of digitized 
>>> books. "They're effectively giving their library to a single 
>>> corporation," he said. "Having a public institution decide to go 
>>> with Google's restrictions doesn't help the idea of libraries being 
>>> open in the future."
>>
>> This brings up one of the main questions on my mind: what does the UC 
>> contract say about sharing the files that Google creates? 
>> Fortunately, UC is a public institution subject to the California 
>> public records act, so I'm hoping that we will soon be able to see a 
>> copy of that contract, as we did with the Michigan one.
>>
>> There are other issues as well, including the quality control one 
>> that we've brought up here from time to time. Google's goal is to 
>> produce searchable text, and they can do so fairly quickly and 
>> inexpensively by tolerating a certain amount of error. UC's goal 
>> seems to be different -- there are hints that they are looking at the 
>> Google solution as providing them with almost a substitute for the 
>> book itself.* My fear is that all of this effort is going to turn out 
>> to be just the digital version of microfiche -- good from a 
>> technology point of view, but lousy for library users.
>
> I had an offline conversation about this earlier this afternoon, and 
> the goal for UC likely is a straightforward one -- get as many books 
> digitized as possible through whichever partnerships present 
> themselves to be able to create their own UC-wide digital book resource.
>
> Sure, there are issues with books being available through multiple 
> services, and Google being a closed service, and how any of this jibes 
> with UC being a public institution.  But, in the end, UC is going to 
> get a lot of its collections digitized and will be able to deliver 
> them in as many ways as they can.
>
>> kc
>>
>> * See comments by Schoettlander about preservation in Aug. 9 
>> announcement 
>> http://www.universityofcalifornia.edu/news/2006/aug09.html, as well 
>> as the comment from Hume, "Amongst them, of course, is the free and 
>> unfettered full-text access we can provide to our public domain 
>> holdings."
>>
>> -- 
>> -----------------------------------
>> Karen Coyle / Digital Library Consultant
>> kcoyle at kcoyle.net http://www.kcoyle.net
>> ph.: 510-540-7596
>> fx.: 510-848-3913
>> mo.: 510-435-8234
>
>
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>

-- 
-----------------------------------
Karen Coyle / Digital Library Consultant
kcoyle at kcoyle.net http://www.kcoyle.net
ph.: 510-540-7596
fx.: 510-848-3913
mo.: 510-435-8234
------------------------------------