Honestly, this would be a great OpenURL service:
Send an isbn/OCLC/LCCN and get back a menu (or XML document or JSON
response) with whether or not that item is in OCA/PG (available from
IndexData's OpenContent), or available via Google Books in full or
just search (and OpenURL would be especially useful here as you can
send the user's IP to determine if a work is available in fulltext for
them), or Amazon's 'search inside the book'.
The data for sites like Amazon and GBS and MS (and whatever other
'closed' source) could be aggregated via a bookmarklet like Tim just
mentioned.
This would be a seriously great and useful service.
-Ross.
On 9/14/07, Tim Spalding <tim_at_librarything.com> wrote:
> I'm aware GBS throttles attempts to get the data. Since Google is
> *surely* interested in external sites linking to them, I can only
> conclude this is an oversight on their part. (It would certainly
> surprise me if a site built on search—their bots make up to 1/3 of
> LibraryThing total traffic!—did not want others to link to search and
> link to them.)
>
> To solve this problem, I am creating a JavaScript bookmarklet that
> works like "SETI_at_home." You go to Google Book Search and click a
> button. In the background it searches for books and brings back the
> Google IDs. You can do it while you work on something else in another
> window, or stare slackjawed as the results going by. Because it uses
> your browser and your IP address, and because it goes slowly, it does
> not appear to trigger shutdowns.
>
> If you are a LibraryThing member it will search for your LibraryThing
> books. If not, or if you just want to help, it will search for random
> books that haven't been covered.
>
> All the data will be made freely available on LibraryThing, no strings
> attached. I'm hoping that libraries and projects like the Open Library
> pick it up. If there's a desire, we'll add GBS links to our
> LibraryThing for Libraries product, as a free add-on.
>
> Tim
>
> On 9/14/07, Jason Etheridge <phasefx_at_gmail.com> wrote:
> > On 9/14/07, Tim Spalding <tim_at_librarything.com> wrote:
> > > It seems to me this would be a service—check out a book before you get
> > > it. But I could imagine it would also touch a nerve.
> >
> > I'd like this (and have certainly experimented with Project Gutenberg
> > records), but (and this might be obvious) you'd want to build it so
> > that it can be selectively disabled.
> >
> > It surprised me at first, but some libraries don't actually want
> > patrons spending too much time on "catalog-only" workstations, and
> > they'll lock them down to prevent general internet browsing. The
> > rationale is that those stations are a limited resource, and they want
> > as many patrons to have access to them for the immediate need of
> > finding resources in the stacks. They'll have other workstations
> > dedicated to Internet and under the control of some time management
> > software. On those, you'd want to expose all the online resources you
> > can.
> >
> > -- Jason
> > http:://esilibrary.com/
> >
>
>
> --
> Check out my library at http://www.librarything.com/profile/timspalding
>
Received on Fri Sep 14 2007 - 12:24:29 EDT