[Menvi-discuss] Accessible Books Consortium

[Jeanie Willis]

Hi All,

 

Not sure if everyone is aware that under the Marrakesh treaty Braille books
can now freely be shared via the Accessible Books Consortium (ABC).

 

I think I last heard there are 23 member countries whose blind foundations
are now sharing with each other and this recently includes the entire NLS
Bard catalogue & CNIB, plus smaller collections like ours in NZ.  If your
country isn't involved this is something you might want to push for.  And if
you are having things transcribed in a member country making sure the local
blind foundation library catalogues, adds and shares these.

 

But what nobody seemed to know until mentioned a few months ago on an NZ
blind chat list by Martine Able is that there is a supplementary members
catalogue where individuals can sign in and download directly from.  To do
this you do have to be a member of the library of a blind foundation who is
one of the 17 that have joined this supplementary catalogue and there is a
list on the website of those that have.  You fill in the online registration
and then they check with your library to approve you.

www.abcglobalbooks.org/ <http://www.abcglobalbooks.org/> 

 

I have had some titles that haven't shown up in the members supplementary
catalogue that then my library has still been able to access via their ABC
log-in to the main catalogue.  So it isn't a perfect system.  RNIB as far as
I know have not joined and some members like Vision Australia have not
subscribed to the supplementary catalogue system so can only access ABC via
their own library service and not directly.  But anyone can search the
catalogue without logging in, so it still might be a help.

 

Jeanie

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