* Google has access to WorldCat metadata
* Google says bad metadata comes from external providers
* No restrictions on which WorldCat metadata fields can be used
"Bits of destruction" is a phrase Fred Wilson uses to describe the destructive part of "creative destruction" brought on by digitization. We hear a lot about the destruction wrought on the newspaper business. A more interesting and nuanced wave is now hitting the book publishing business. Actually, it is three waves: the digitization of back catalogs, e-books, and print on demand. However this plays out, a lot of people will be affected, but the way in which it will play out is not at all obvious. This is too big a subject for one post, so read this as an introduction to a multi-post investigation.
Today’s post is not to argue that the settlement should be approved, but to consider what the situation will be if the settlement is rejected. The proponents and opponents of the settlement certainly seem to differ on what the world will look like if the settlement is approved; might there be somewhat greater agreement between the sides about what the world will look like if the settlement is rejected?
This bibliography presents selected English-language articles and other works that are useful in understanding Google Book Search. It primarily focuses on the evolution of Google Book Search and the legal, library, and social issues associated with it. Where possible, links are provided to works that are freely available on the Internet, including e-prints in disciplinary archives and institutional repositories. Note that e-prints and published articles may not be identical.
May 15, 2009: Berlin. A speech that remixes a bit of David Post's fantastic book, In Search of Jefferson's Moose, given at an event hosted by the Heinrich-Boell-Foundation.