08-20, 04:00–05:00 (UTC), National Library, Imagination Room
Language: English
Wikisource is a Wikimedia Foundation platform that allows volunteers to transcribe and proofread out-of-copyright books, which are then freely available as PDFs or EPUBs. A project with the Westland District Library on the West Coast of New Zealand used Wikisource to digitise local literature, history, and travel writing, employing a part-time librarian to find and scan eligible texts. The resulting EPUBs were then manually uploaded to the library’s Overdrive catalogue, making them available to borrowers as ebooks. The books are now more accessible and have been read far more times than when they were only on library shelves. This model could be followed by any library system; this short workshop will demonstrate the workflow.
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What is Wikisource? (20 min). Introduction to Wikisource for beginners: the process of upload, transcription, proofreading and validation; the Wikisource community; examples of texts that have been transcribed; a cheat sheet of transcription templates.
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The West Coast Task Force (20 min). How the West Coast project came about, range of texts transcribed, the Mātātuhi Foundation grant, approaching authors for copyright licenses, and potential works to clear.
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Wikisource and the public library (10 min). How an ebook-lending library can upload Wikisource EPUBs as community-contributed works, and the resulting impact on loan statistics.
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Wikisource and the Singapore National Library (10 min). Wikisource requires public-domain or openly-licensed works, but the scanned books available, such as A Beachcomber in the Orient (1923) are watermarked “All Rights Reserved National Library Board Singapore”. What can be done in this situation (a discussion)?
Everyone can participate in this session
How will you deliver this session? –In-person, live: The speaker or speakers will all be onsite in Singapore
How does your session relate to the event themes: Diversity, Collaboration, Future? –My session relates to the conference themes of Diversity, Collaboration, and Future in the following ways:
Diversity: Wikisource is a free online library that hosts texts in many languages and genres, from ancient classics to modern literature, from poetry to science, from fiction to non-fiction. Wikisource celebrates the diversity of human knowledge and culture, and welcomes contributions from anyone who shares its vision. By introducing Wikisource to libraries, I hope to encourage more librarians and library users in Singapore and the region to join the Wikisource community and enrich its content with their diverse perspectives and expertise. I also hope to showcase the rich and diverse heritage of Singapore and Southeast Asia through the texts available on Wikisource.
Collaboration: Wikisource is a collaborative project that relies on the collective efforts of volunteers to proofread, transcribe, translate, annotate, and curate texts. Wikisource also collaborates with other Wikimedia projects, such as Wikipedia, Wikimedia Commons, and Wikidata, to provide reliable sources, media files, and structured data for the texts. By presenting Wikisource to libraries, I aim to foster more collaboration between Wikisource and libraries in Singapore and the region, as well as among libraries themselves, to share resources, best practices, and experiences in digitizing, preserving, and disseminating texts. I also aim to promote the Library Association of Singapore (LAS) as a platform for networking and professional development among librarians interested in Wikisource.
Future: Wikisource is a forward-looking project that embraces new technologies and innovations to improve its functionality and accessibility. Wikisource uses tools such as OCR, bots, scripts, templates, gadgets, and APIs to automate tasks, enhance user interface, and integrate with external platforms. Wikisource also experiments with new formats and features, such as audio books, e-books, annotations, citations, and linked data. By showcasing Wikisource to libraries, I hope to inspire more libraries in Singapore and the region to adopt Wikisource as a platform for their digital collections and services, and to participate in its future development. I also hope to align with the National Library Board’s vision of LAB25 (Libraries and Archives Blueprint 2025) which aims to transform libraries into inclusive learning spaces that support lifelong learning.