According to Google, the aim of the project make it easier for people to find relevant books – specifically, books they wouldn't find any other way such as those that are out of print – while carefully respecting authors' and publishers' copyrights.
The project started around 2003 when Google approached the Library of Congress with proposal to digitize all the books in the library. When the Library of Congress offered a counterproposal that would only include public domain books, Google did not follow up.
Google then turned other major libraries including those at the University of Michigan, Oxford University and Harvard University and the New York Public Library with some success.
The Google Library Project began in 2004 with the announcement that to would be digitizing the collections of five major university libraries, which would cover more than 15 million volumes.
In 2010 42 libraries cooperated with Google. Most libraries have restricted their collaboration to collections in the public domain.
The libraries of the University of Michigan and Stanford University have given Google permission to digitize their complete collection, including works still protected by copyright law.
It is an amazing resource and the good of using Google books that it can help educators assess the content of a book for its relation to the topic, readability level and to teach students about public domain materials and copyright laws.
Its user will be able to identify which books are likely most germane to be a specific inquiry, to locate the pages on which the search term appears, and to get limited sense of what the book might say with regard to the subject of the user’s search.
Google will also list local libraries where the book might be found and post links to third parties, like Amazon.com, where users may purchase the book or view or download portions of it for a price.
Google Books has provided scholars the ability to engage on primary research in a way that did not exist till now. Google Books has taken some limitations such as lack of funding, travelling and research at various locations by scanning historical documents that would have been difficult to obtain through traditional modes.
Google Books Library Project
