Great online resource

There are countless tomes of literature in world that were written in thousands of languages, and it impossible to have all these documents stored in their original paper, stone, papyrus, or parchment format in one safe place. Even if there was a building large enough to hold all these documents, the cost and risk of storing them in one place would be astronomical. So why not use new technology and preserve them as digital files?

In 1971, Project Gutenberg was born. Michael Hart, the founder, began to reproduce these documents in a digital form which requires the minimal computer standards to replicate formatting and special characters and at the same time, produces a small file that is easily transferred from computer to computer.

Currently, Project Gutenberg has over 100,000 titles available to choose from through their network of partners, associates, and resources.

Why it this so important?

• The environmental impact of reproducing countless books in traditional paperbound format is becoming too great

• Important references and resources may be lost due the challenges faced by conservationists

• Many great works are available to a greater portion of the world due the spread of technology and translation potential of the digital works