Digital Bibliography

Here’s a the trailer for the book that got me interested in the first place:

And here’s his own introduction to the project:

And finally, an excerpt -from and link-to his interview in the New York Times:

It was hardly an original idea: it’s a technique that has, in different ways, been practiced for as long as there has been writing — perhaps most brilliantly by Tom Phillips in his magnum opus, “A Humument.” But I was more interested in subtracting than adding, and also in creating a book with a three-dimensional life. On the brink of the end of paper, I was attracted to the idea of a book that can’t forget it has a body.

In yesterday’s post, I argued (ranted?) that “in order to understand the impact of digital technologies on The Book, it’s important to think through these questions in terms of non-digital/pre-digital books.” Yep. In a much more sober and reflective state this afternoon, I’m sticking with that one.

But how to do it? There are two ways that I’m thinking of today.

The first is to explore the history of the book. And I’m talking all that way back to scrolls. Then the codex. That transition (read: to pages) is what I’m considering as my working definition for the beginning of The Book. Lots of books, articles, and chapters dedicated to those sorts of pursuits, and I’m sure I’ll be commenting on them as I work my way through them. Read the rest of this entry »