Via The New York Times: Some Fear Google’s Power in Digital Books:
"To Thomas Augst, an English professor at New York University who has studied the history of libraries, including those in the past that were run as businesses, what is significant is that the digitization of books is ending the distinction between circulating libraries, meant for public readers, and research libraries, meant for scholars. It’s not as if anyone from the public can walk into the Harvard library.
“A positive way to look at what Google is doing,” he said, “is that it is advancing the circulating of books and leveling these distinctions.”
In a final twist, however, the digital-rights class-action agreement has the potential to make physical libraries newly relevant. Each public library will have one computer with complete access to Google Book Search, a service that normally would come as part of a paid subscription.
One of Mr. Darnton’s concerns is that a single computer may not be enough to meet public demand. But Mr. Augst already can see a great benefit.
Google is “creating a new reason to go to public libraries, which I think is fantastic,” he said."
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/02/technology/internet/02link.html?_r=1&scp=1&sq=google%20book%20search&st=cse
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