McMaster University Library Partners With Kirtas Technologies, Ristech and Lulu.com to Unleash Thousands of Rare Books to the World

HAMILTON, Ontario, May 21 /PRNewswire/ -- Imagine owning a copy of Galileo's 1632 book, Dialogo di Galileo Galilei (Galileo's Dialogue), challenging the traditional thinking that the universe revolves around the earth. At the time, the book and its concepts were so controversial, that Galileo was convicted of heresy in 1633 and the book was placed on the Index of Forbidden Books.

Or perhaps a first-edition, autographed copy of H.G. Wells' The Time Machine is a more suitable choice for your own personal library?

These books and more will be made available to the public, beginning this fall, through a unique partnership between Canada's McMaster University Library and U.S.-based companies Kirtas Technologies, Inc. and Lulu.com.

With the support of Kirtas' Canadian reseller Ristech, McMaster University will be using the Kirtas APT BookScan 2400RA to digitize rare, out-of-print books. Once the books are digitized and processed, files will be made available to the world on the Internet through the university library and for sale as print-on-demand books on Lulu.com.

"We have significant collections that we would like to make more widely accessible through digitization," said Jeffrey Trzeciak, University Librarian at McMaster University. "The digitization technology provided by Kirtas, the support and service we receive from Ristech, and the ability of Lulu to pull it all together increases both the electronic availability and the availability of the books in print for those who choose print on demand."

As the publisher of these unique books, the Library also hopes to generate revenue through the print-on-demand service.

"We see more and more universities taking advantage of the print-on-demand option that is enabled through the digitization process," said Kirtas Founder and CEO Lotfi Belkhir. "Not only are these institutions sharing their unique collections, but they are also creating a revenue stream that allows them to reinvest in their access and preservation efforts."

"This is a tremendous opportunity for our customers to obtain books that may not be easy to find," said Lulu.com CEO and Founder Bob Young. "In addition to being a place to publish, Lulu is a vast marketplace where anyone can buy books on just about any subject." A native of Hamilton, Ontario, the affiliation puts Young in familiar territory.

McMaster University Library will be hosting a launch event celebrating their entry into mass digitization and publishing on Monday, May 26th at 9:30 a.m. The event will take place in the Mills Learning Commons at Mills Memorial Library and will include a demonstration of the machine and display some of the Library's rare book collection.

About McMaster University

McMaster University, a world-renowned, research-intensive university, fosters a culture of innovation, and a commitment to discovery and learning in teaching, research and scholarship. Based in Hamilton, the University, one of only four Canadian universities to be listed on the Top 100 universities in the world, has a student population of more than 23,000, and an alumni population of more than 131,000 in 128 countries.

About Ristech

Ristech is a leading Canadian Distributor of Automated Digitization Technologies. Founded in 1995 Ristech sells and supports the technologies required to convert books, film and paper to digital images. The primary focus of Ristech is to provide mass digitization solutions to our clients. This is accomplished by offering a combination of Robotic Technologies combined with automated batch conversion software solutions and on-site technical support.

About Kirtas Technologies

Since the company was founded in 2001, Kirtas Technologies has pioneered and perfected the technology used today in quality, high-speed, nondestructive mass book digitization. The company's revolutionary technology redefines digitization of all bound documents, delivering the gentlest handling, the highest image quality, faster and with fewer errors than any other solution in the marketplace today.

About Lulu.com

Lulu.com is the premier marketplace for digital content on the Internet, with over 320,000 recently published titles, and more than 5,000 new titles added each week, created by people in 80 different countries. With just over one million registered members, Lulu is changing the world of publishing by enabling the creators to publish their work themselves with complete editorial and copyright control. With storefronts provided and other marketing support, Lulu creators are fully empowered to profit from their work.