Project Gutenberg founder dies at 64
Posted by Celia Walter | 8 Sep, 2011
Michael S. Hart, the founder of Project Gutenberg passed away on 6 September. Hart, born in 1947, started Project Gutenberg in 1971 with the digitisation of the US Declaration of Independence, which Hart made available to other computer users at the University of Illinois.
Project Gutenberg was founded to distribute copyright-free eBooks free of charge. Currently, it offers more than 36,000 eBooks for download in variety of formats. Tens of thousands more eBooks are available through the project's network of national affiliates and other partners (works sometimes lapsing into public domain at different times in different jurisdictions).
Project Gutenberg's mission statement explains: "The mission of Project Gutenberg is simple: To encourage the creation and distribution of eBooks.
"This mission is, as much as possible, to encourage all those who are interested in making eBooks and helping to give them away...
Obituary on Project Gutenburg by Dr. Gregory B. Newby.
A big 'Thank you', Michael.
Celia