Sunday, August 9, 2009

128,000 Free eBooks!

Project Gutenberg is a volunteer effort to digitize and archive cultural works, and to "encourage the creation and distribution of eBooks." Project Gutenberg Founded in 1971 by Michael S. Hart, it is the oldest digital library. Most of the items in its collection are the full texts of public domain books. The project tries to make these as free as possible, in open formats that can be used on almost any computer.

Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka As of March 2009, Project Gutenberg claimed over 28,000 items in its collection. Project Gutenberg is affiliated with many projects that are independent organizations which share the same ideals, and have been given permission to use the Project Gutenberg trademark. This adds another 100,000 eBooks freely available to the public!

Top 100 eBooks
Project Gutenberg keeps track of the top downloaded eBooks. Here are some of most popular downloads this week (click the title to view the HTML format version of the eBook):

Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
Dracula by Bram Stoker
Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte
The Prince by Niccolò Machiavelli
The Iliad by Homer
Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka
The War of the Worlds by H. G. Wells
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain
Through the Looking Glass by Lewis Carroll
Frankenstein by Mary Shelley

Wherever possible, the releases are available in plain text, but other formats are included, such as HTML, PDF, EPUB, MOBI and Plucker. These formats cover a wide variety of PC, PDAs, cell phones, and other devices. Most releases are in the English language, but many non-English works are also available.

Other Blog Postings on Free Books
Here’s a list of other Redmond Library blog postings on free books for viewing:

International Children's Digital Library
Turning the Pages: Masterpieces of the British Library
Books24x7: a KCLS online technical resource

Redmond Library Board

No comments: