[14367] in Public-Access_Computer_Systems_Forum
Re: Project Gutenberg Needs You!!!
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (Dan Lester)
Fri Apr 26 19:01:42 2002
Date: Thu, 25 Apr 2002 16:19:23 -0600
From: Dan Lester <dan@RIVEROFDATA.COM>
In-reply-to: <Pine.SOL.4.40.0204231511310.9524-100000@beryl.ils.unc.edu>
To: PACS-L@LISTSERV.UH.EDU
Reply-to: Dan Lester <dan@RIVEROFDATA.COM>
Message-id: <131276514026.20020425161923@riverofdata.com>
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Tuesday, April 23, 2002, 1:11:59 PM, you wrote:
MH> We need to reach a wider audience if we are going to give away
MH> the ONE TRILLION eBooks that has been our goal for many years.
I think that PG is a fine project, and I applaud the work of those who
are dedicated to it. However, the incredible numeric claims that are
talked about and dreamed of are a real turnoff to me, and, I know, to
many others.
Think about a trillion books. If we assume there are some 6 to 7
billion people in the world, we're talking some 150 - 160 ebooks for
each and every person. Most people in the world have never read 160
books in their whole lives, regardless of format. Why? Illiteracy.
Poverty. Lack of libraries. The list goes on.
Then when you look at the even smaller set of people who have an
internet connection, you'd need each of us to receive (download, or
whatever it is that would count for it having been given to us) a vast
number of books to make one trillion.
PG has a great many classics available. I've read many, and have many
more of them on my list of "things to read someday, such as when I
retire in about seven years". Will I ever read all of those? Not
bloody likely. There will be too many other things to do, new books
to read, and so forth.
MH> Please help us reach more readers. . .send us email addresses
MH> for anyone you know in the media. . .if no email address then
MH> web addresses. Thank you so much! MUCH MORE IS BELOW!!!
I hope that these addresses don't get used for spamming.
MH> With the presentation of our 5,000th eBooks two weeks ago,
MH> Project Gutenberg officially passed the halfway mark in an
MH> attempt to give a total of 10,000 eBooks to 100 million of
MH> the world's readers, and to help create more readers along
MH> the way.
At least the 100 million books given away is, perhaps, within the
realm of possibility.
As to the rest of the incredibly long message, I didn't read it all.
Who was it who said "I'm sending you a long letter because I didn't
have time to write a short one."? Twain? Churchill?
Well, if you don't have time to write a short one, I don't have time
to read a long one.
cheers
dan
--
Dan Lester, Data Wrangler dan@RiverOfData.com 208-283-7711
3577 East Pecan, Boise, Idaho 83716-7115 USA
www.riverofdata.com www.gailndan.com Stop Global Whining!
