A little while ago I had some fairly harsh things to say about the French national library’s response to Google’s project to put major library collections on the internet (Google Print). I basically said that their objections were based on chauvinism, and asked why they were doing nothing constructive in placing their own collections in a state of free availability – surely if you are concerned about not enough French works being online, denying large numbers of them to the web is not the best solution.
Well, it seems there’s been some movement..Le Monde reports that President Jacques Chirac has in effect called in M. Jeanneney for a tea-and-no-biscuits briefing on the issue. Suddenly, everyone is mad keen both on a “European partnership” to digitise books and also on developing search technology to go with it. And, into the bargain, cooperating with “other international networks” including the search gnomes of California.
Do I need to remind you that someone at the Elysée reads the Ranter? (see here) You know it makes sense, Monsieur le Président. Or you’ll have me on your hands…
hehe =)