January 21, 2007

Google Will Let You Read Books Online

Google's book search program will give publishers a new option to monetize their content: sell online access. Currently a very small part of the books indexed by Google can be read entirely and most are public domain books.

"With online access, users who discover a book through Google Book Search will be able to pay for immediate access to its full contents. (...) The book will be available to users only through their browser, and only when they've signed in with their personal account. Users cannot save a copy on their computer or copy pages from the book."

So you'll not actually buy a book (even in a digital format), you'll buy the right to read it online. As the price should be much smaller than for a PDF, this might be an option if you just need some information from a book.

Google doesn't think this system could be a substitute for book stores. "You may just want to rent a travel guide for the holiday or buy a chapter of a book. Ultimately, it will be the readers who decide how books are read," says Jens Redmer, from Google Europe.

Homework:
1. What do you think it's the future of books?
2. Would you read books online?

27 comments:

  1. I would certainly read textbooks online. High-priced textbooks are getting out of control at my university.

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  2. The cost of a PDF file should not be more expensive that viewing it through Google Books.

    You can get PDF writers for free nowadays , even if you pick up a one you need to purchase it is only less than £50 at the most which can be used for x amount of books so the cost is offset.

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  3. What stops people from print-screening or extracting the content of the book into a PDF or another digital format? If I can see it on my screen, I can save it... Right?

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  4. Yes, of course you can save pages as photos and use a OCR program to digitize them. But you'll have to create a script and most people won't do that. Besides, Google might stop you if you try to automatically get too many pages.

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  5. This is great. Another example of how google is spreading information better than anyone.

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  6. I wouldn't read a book on-line. At least, not on my laptop. But if this works for my Palm I could see myself reading on that. It's more hand-sized and easy to maneuver than a full-on computer.

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  7. Really interesting. However not allowing downloads limits its use

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  8. how to save the google books......any one pls help me......
    advance thanks

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  9. I really think it would be a good idea for google to have a flat fee to access it's library and it would share its revenue with the authors based on unique page views or something...

    Right now, I own an online book site but I can only post public domain books (publicliterature.org). Do I have the right to scan books and do what google did? I doubt it.

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  10. as student at the university,nothing will prevent me from consulting any books in ant time

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  11. i think google should let you have examples of books and put some kind of list of books people read and rated so other people could enjoy it like they did

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  12. couold somebody tell me how you read them online??

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  13. Can you do this to the latest best selling books? Do you need permission from the Publisher or Author? Are you breaking trade laws or any other laws by doing this?

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  14. I think google should post Breaking Dawn and Eclipse.Tons of people would use google just for that fact.Because those two are the hardest to get a hold of out of the entire Twilight series.

    And as for reading online I think it awsomely cool.No librarians,closing hours,or timelimits to find a book.

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  15. The price of textbooks is just appalling. The publishers and the colleges need to work together to find a better solution. Quit punishing those who seek a higher education!

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  16. where can i go to red books online?!?!?!?! i always seach the internet to find a web and read a book i want to read... and i never find any! do you guys know where i could go?

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  17. Damnit !
    how do you read them, I have them in my libary,
    I just can't read them!
    HELP ME

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  18. I would do this because spending $750 on books and not even be able to get half of that back is just crazy.

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  19. I want a website that i can go to, to read books online. Can you read the latest best-selling books online? If anyone knows please respond.

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  20. i want to read books online for book reports that i have to do. but i can never get a book i like. so this is why we need more online books that u can read while another person in another country reads the same book! :)
    signed: bubblelishious (female)lol

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  21. The only reaosn people would ever want to read a book online is for it be free. Why would you pay for a book when you can go to your library? Amazing. I would not do this, you cant keep the book on the internet! Why pay?

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  22. people want anything, even things they do not need, and will never use, because they are free.
    think about it.

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  23. "Not everything is for free". However the sheer convience of reading online is very helpful to some of us.

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  24. well you can always download Google books under the full view category!!
    I bet most people dont know how to do it!

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  25. This is a great way to encourage kids to read because they are always using technology nowadays. They dont like to go and check out a book from a library. They want the books they want to come to them. And now they can.

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  26. I like the way you think . Now i don't have to go to the library and so as my kids

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  27. " Great article, we are like your tips,Gave me a few good ideas. thanks for sharing " !!!


    Bulksms

    smsgatewayhub

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