Wouldn't it be great if every book that's ever been published was accessible online? Well, that's what the folks at Internet Archive's Open Library have set out to do. I've mentioned the Internet Archive before. They now have an ambitious new project to catalogue and "capture" all existing books, starting with those in the public domain (books that no longer have copyright). The service has just started so we can only see a demo, but it already looks very impressive. When it's finished, it'll be the biggest library the world has ever known.
Perhaps the most invaluable aspect of Open Library is its attempt to preserve and present the old classics. Hard-to-find early editions are scanned to look like 3D animated virtual books in which you can turn the pages like a real book. Some even have scribbles in the margins and smudges showing their age. This is as close to a real reading experience as one can get. Later on, you will be able to magnify hard to read pages, listen to an audio recording if available, and even print/download the entire book.
Here are some samples from the growing collection:
- Shakespeare's Sonnets [1609,1927] (skip the first few blank pages)
- The Divine Comedy, by Dante Alighieri (Translated by Longfellow) [1869]
- Adventures of Tom Sawyer, by Mark Twain [1876]
- A Boy's Will, by Robert Frost [1915]
- The Complete Novels of Jane Austen (over 1,300 pages)
Some famous books on Korea in English (mostly dealing with Japanese colonization, the Christian mission and the Korean War):
- The Passing of Korea, by Homer B. Hulbert [1906]
- The Vanguard: A Tale of Korea, by James S. Gale [1904]
- Ewa: A Tale of Korea, by W. Arthur Noble [1906]
- Korea's Fight for Freedom, by F.A. McKenzie [1920]
- Korea Today, by George M. McCune [1950]
In addition to books about Korea, there are many books written by Korean authors translated into English, though they're not ready for viewing yet. These even include books by Kim Il-sung and Kim Jong-il.