The first ebook was available in July 1971, as eText #1 of Project
Gutenberg, a visionary project launched by Michael Hart to create
electronic versions of literary works and disseminate them worldwide.
In the 16th century, Gutenberg allowed anyone to have print books for a
small cost. In the 21st century, Project Gutenberg would allow anyone
to have a digital library at no cost. Its critics long considered
Project Gutenberg as impossible on a large scale. But Michael went on
keying book after book during many years, with the occasional help of
some volunteers. Project Gutenberg got its first boost with the
invention of the web in 1990 and its second boost with the creation of
Distributed Proofreaders in 2000, to help digitizing books from public
domain. In 2008, Project Gutenberg had a production rate of 340 new
books each month, 40 mirror sites worldwide, and books being downloaded
by the tens of thousands every day. There have been Project Gutenberg
websites in the U.S, in Australia, in Europe and in Canada, with more
websites to come in other countries.