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permalink: /policy/collection_development.htm
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---
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The Project Gutenberg collection is the result of many volunteers, over many years, who have
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selects and digitized a variety of written and other works.
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Project Gutenberg is a library of free electronic books (eBooks).
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The Project Gutenberg collection has been built by the efforts of many volunteers who,
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over many years, have selected and digitized a variety of written and other works. The
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collection continues to grow, as new works are submitted.
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## What types of works are accepted?
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Project Gutenberg only accepts donations of eBooks (i.e., written works) that are in the public domain
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in the United States. Typically, new submissions to Project Gutenberg are digitized versions of
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books that were published long ago, and for which US copyright has expired.
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Collection development focuses on literature and other written works that have enduring value
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for readers. Selections are made by volunteers with diverse interests, and essentially all eligible
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submissions are welcome.
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The basic eligibility criteria are:
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- Submitted eBooks are digitized versions of printed books, or similar items such as manuals,
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pamphlets, travelogues, journals, or chapbooks.
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- Project Gutenberg confirms the source - that is, the printed item(s) from which the eBook is
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derived - is in the public domain in the US, via the copyright portal at https://copy.pglaf.org
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- The eBook is submitted via the upload portal at https://upload.pglaf.org, and meets the
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requirements there for formatting and proofreading accuracy.
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- The resulting eBook is entirely in the public domain in the US. The "sweat of the brow" effort
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to digitize the source, and any incidental or supplemental additions - such as transcriber's notes,
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indices, improvements or supplements to artwork - are entirely in the public domain.
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Some ineligibile items include:
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- Scans of books or other sources that have not been converted to machine-readable text, and
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undergone proofreading and formatting to the requirements of the upload portal.
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- Original contemporary items, even if they are granted to the public domain by the author.
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- Items that were not previously published or distributed.
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## How is a Project Gutenberg eBook related to the source(s) it was based on?
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Project Gutenberg eBooks are new works, derived from existing printed works. Project Gutenberg does not
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require that its eBooks be exact representations of their printed sources (i.e., facsimiles). Instead,
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the printed works are transformed into modern digital formats. This process typically includes
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removing page headers/footers, de-hyphenation, formatting or relocating footnotes and endnotes,
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adding internal links for table of contents and indices, and many other improvements that are
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intended to yield an enjoyable reading experience.
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Project Gutenberg allows latitude for the volunteers who produce new eBooks to make choices about
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how to go about digitization. There are strict criteria for the file formats and compliance
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checks, which are documented in the upload portal. The producer may make stylistic choices, such
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as for page layout or images, whether to indicate original page numbers from the source, how to handle
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footnotes or endnotes, and other factors about how the printed item is digitized. Producers are
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encouraged to focus on presentation of the content and structure of the eBook, more than a particular
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visual presentation or layout. This is because Project Gutenberg eBooks are intended to be enjoyable, no
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matter how or where they are read. As such, production choices should not inhibit automated or
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non-automated creationg of new derived formats.
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## What topics and subject matter are of interest?
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The eBooks in the Project Gutenberg collection are freely offered to readers for their enjoyment, enlightenment,
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education, and entertainment. The collection includes eBooks on many topics. There is emphasis on
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literary works and reference items of historical significance, because volunteers have focused
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on digitizing such works. Any eligible item, on any topic, is welcome.
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Project Gutenberg subscribes to the principles of the American Library Association's
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Freedom to Read Statement (FTR), which may be found online at http://www.ala.org/advocacy/intfreedom/freedomreadstatement.
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This means that Project Gutenberg does not avoid difficult or unpopular topics, or topics
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for which societal views, or state-of-the-art knowledge, is vastly different from contemporary literature.
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The FTR relies on the US Constitution's First Amendment right to freedom of speech and freedom of the press.
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Project Gutenberg was founded on the idea that free, unlimited access to the world's literature is a
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pathway to literacy, education, and enlightenment. It is inimical to these principles that the collection,
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or access to it, be restricted due to content.
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Project Gutenberg's readers and contributors are encouraged to read the entire FTR document. It presents
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a vision for how libraries and publishers, and the people behind them, may work together to "enrich
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the quality and diversity of thought and expression."
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The FTR makes it clear that inclusion of an item in a library collection does not mean the ideas within
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it are endorsed by the library: "librarians, and booksellers do not need to endorse every idea or presentation they make available. It would conflict with the public interest for them to establish their own political, moral, or aesthetic views as a standard for determining what should be published or circulated."
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The final paragraph of FTR serves to summarize Project Gutenberg's commitment to building a diverse and vibrant
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collection, and to not avoid inclusion of eBooks based on their topics or the ideas within them:
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"We state these propositions neither lightly nor as easy generalizations. We here stake out a lofty claim for the value of the written word. We do so because we believe that it is possessed of enormous variety and usefulness, worthy of cherishing and keeping free. We realize that the application of these propositions may mean the dissemination of ideas and manners of expression that are repugnant to many persons. We do not state these propositions in the comfortable belief that what people read is unimportant. We believe rather that what people read is deeply important; that ideas can be dangerous; but that the suppression of ideas is fatal to a democratic society. Freedom itself is a dangerous way of life, but it is ours."
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## Historic scope
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