Difference between revisions of "Ebook seminar"

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**[http://print.google.com/print?id=OGB8CoKSzYoC The Internet Galaxy] / Manuel Castells via Google Print
 
**[http://print.google.com/print?id=OGB8CoKSzYoC The Internet Galaxy] / Manuel Castells via Google Print
 
**[http://free-culture.org/freecontent/ Free Culture] / Lawrence Lessing (350-page PDF with bookmarks)
 
**[http://free-culture.org/freecontent/ Free Culture] / Lawrence Lessing (350-page PDF with bookmarks)
**[http://www.gutenberg.org/etext/14721 Speeches and Letters of Abraham Lincoln, 1832-1865]] via Gutenberg Project
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**[http://www.gutenberg.org/etext/14721 Speeches and Letters of Abraham Lincoln, 1832-1865] via Gutenberg Project
 
**[http://www.cryptonomicon.com/beginning.html In the Beginning was the Command Line] / Neal Stephenson (150 pages in plain text)
 
**[http://www.cryptonomicon.com/beginning.html In the Beginning was the Command Line] / Neal Stephenson (150 pages in plain text)
 
**[http://www.oreilly.com/catalog/docbook/chapter/book/docbook.html DocBook: The Definitive Guide] / Norm Walsh  (652 pages in HTML)
 
**[http://www.oreilly.com/catalog/docbook/chapter/book/docbook.html DocBook: The Definitive Guide] / Norm Walsh  (652 pages in HTML)

Revision as of 03:24, 4 April 2005

Notes for soctech seminar planning, Spring 2005

Ebooks: Reading, Copyright, and Digital Rights

For several millenia, books have been the primary means used in society to attempt to permanently record and hand down knowledge. By the late 20th Century, books were part of a complex system involving readers, publishers, and authors, each of whose rights were balanced by two hundred years of copyright law. The massive growth of distribution of information in digital form at the end of the 20th Century, including electronic books or "ebooks," created a new environment which challenges the existing balance.

This seminar will explore the present issues surrounding ebooks, including the implications for readers, the law, and technology. No prior background in computer science or law is required. The first weeks of the quarter will focus on a framework for discussion, followed by several theme sessions on various topics.


Schedule details

Week 1: Intro

  • Discussion leader: Joshua
  • Topics:
    • What is this course about and not about, and why are we here?
    • basic definitions,
    • what attendees want out of the class
  • Post-Reading:
    • David Levy "A Bit of Digital History" Scrolling Forward p. 137-157 (20 pages)
  • Recommended Optional Reading:

Week 2: The Basic Framework

Week 3. Copyright of digital documents

Week 4. Licensing of digital documents

Week 5. In Libraries: "Can I check out this eBook?"

Week 6. Scholarly publishing

Week 7. DRM Technology

Week 8. Preservation

Week 9. Digital documents in international development

Week 10. Accessibility

Past courses to mine for useful content

Floating readings

These are readings that haven't been matched to a date yet.

Other notes

  • assumptions:
    • everyone will have at least a layman's understanding of terms
    • we can come up with one good discussable reading per session
    • a volunteer or assigned discussion facilitator for each session
  • Honestly, I don't particularly like the name ebooks. For me, the term is to closely associated with a struggling publishing industry. I think this class is more generally interested in the digital rights issues, and looking to exclude visual and audio art. How about the term "digital word?" - David
  • I don't like the name either, but what does "digital word" mean to anyone? We'll deal with the misconceptions in class. :) - Joshua

How many days worth of class is this?