Chapter 2: Scope of the Case Studies 6
Chapter 3: Method of Working 8
Chapter 4: Project Gutenberg 9
Chapter 5: Details and circumstances of the Interviews 10
Chapter 6: Analysis 11
Perception and Awareness of Digital Preservation 11
Preservation Activity 12
Compliance Monitoring 14
Digital Preservation Costs 14
Future Outlook 14
Chapter 7: Conclusions 16
Executive Summary
Project Gutenberg is the first and largest collection of eBooks made
freely available to the public. The project philosophy is that the
greatest value of computers is not their computing power, but rather
their potential for the searchable storage and retrieval of library
materials. The premise for the project is that any object - whether
text, picture, sound or 3D image - that can be entered into a computer
can be replicated indefinitely. The eBooks generated by Project
Gutenberg are stored on two main servers and can then be downloaded to
local servers around the world. This case study differs form many other
ERPANET studies in that the project is volunteer-driven. As such, there
are no financial or business incentives to preserve the eBooks. The
real incentive lies in the belief that literary works in the public
domain should be freely accessible to as many people as possible for as
long as possible. By digitising everything in 'plain vanilla ASCII' as
well as many other formats, the eBooks are readable by over 99% of
computer operating systems. By avoiding proprietary formats whenever
possible, Project Gutenberg also helps to guarantee the long-term
survival of the bit streams of the eBooks. The combination of open
formats and the proliferation of copies downloaded around the world
should ensure that the Project Gutenberg eBooks currently in existence
are still accessible far into the future.
Chapter 1: The ERPANET Project
The European Commission and Swiss Confederation funded ERPANET Project
(1) (Electronic Resource Preservation and Access Network) works to
enhance the preservation of cultural and scientific digital objects
through raising awareness, providing access to experience, sharing
policies and strategies, and improving practices. To achieve these
goals ERPANET is building an active community of members and actors,
bringing together memory organisations (museums, libraries and
archives), ICT and software industry, research institutions, government
organisations, entertainment and creative industries, and commercial
sectors. ERPANET constructs authoritative information resources on
state-of-the-art developments in digital preservation, promotes
training, and provides advice and tools.
ERPANET consists of four partners and is directed by a management
committee, namely Seamus Ross (HATII, University of Glasgow; principal
director), Niklaus B├╝tikofer (Schweizerisches Bundesarchiv), Hans
Hofman (Nationaal Archief/National Archives of the Netherlands), and
Maria Guercio (ISTBAL, University of Urbino). At each of these nodes a
content editor supports their work, and Peter McKinney serves as a
co-ordinator to the project. An Advisory Committee with experts from
various organisations, institutions, and companies from all over Europe
gives advice and support to ERPANET.