The Early Development of Project Gutenberg

Dr Simon Rowberry's (Director of the Centre for Publishing) second book, the Early Development of Project Gutenberg, has been published as part of the Cambridge Elements in Publishing and Book Culture. In the book, Dr Rowberry re-examines the established narrative of Project Gutenberg's development beyond mythologising Michael Hart's role as the founder, instead focusing on how the Project was a team effort that required legal and technical expertise to grow. The Element offers fresh insights into the emergence of digital publishing before the web, the history of computing, and how a small group of volunteers can shape an important part of our digital cultural heritage that continues to be important with the Project's integration into many generative AI datasets.

You can access a digital copy of the book (with free access until 29^th June 2023) here: https://www.cambridge.org/core/elements/early-development-of-project-gutenberg-c19702000/E5491FB496C9AD6C65DB163AFC642A0F