Human-Powered Internet Archive Book Project

Carl Bialik from the WSJ writes "A group led by the Internet Archive is planning a massive, ambitious effort to scan millions of old books and make them available for Web searching early next year. Behind that effort are about a dozen scanners, employees making about $10 an hour to manually scan volumes -- some more than a century old -- one page at a time, on special contraptions. The Wall Street Journal Online visits a University of Toronto library to watch one of the scanners in action: 25-year-old Liz Ridolfo."

Hey there...

[stev3]

Why hello, Ms. Liz Ridolfo. I'm happy to see you are into computers (at least I'll tell myself that) and you like to put your pictures online.

Please email me at [e-mail]

Re:Good Bad Ugly

[susano_otter]

Now, I happen to be concerned that someone being paid so little should be handling rare books. Not to mention the college graduate getting paid so little.

May we assume that you will therefore be donating additional funds, up to the level of your concern or the amount you can afford (whichever is less)?

best commet ever!

[CannibalSmith]

> bullshit

I too want to be modded Insightful!

Over a century old...

[Cow Jones]

employees making about $10 an hour to manually scan volumes -- some more than a century old

I think that if they hired younger people to scan the books, it might go a little faster.
Imagine a 100 year old at this job...

"...(mumble mumble) in my day we used priests to copy books (mumble mumble) oh dear, I tore another page, darn Parkinson (mumble mumble)"

Re:Fp/Google

[Anonymous Coward]

apparently you were more interested in getting first post than reading tfa.

You must be new here ;)

Re:$11 - $12 per hour

[Kadin2048]

What would be the equivalent local rate for scanners in Europe?

Probably about $35 an hour, they'd only work seven hours, three days a week, and they'd be on strike half the year anyway. And you can't fire any of them. ;-)