FYI France: _Internet Digital Libraries_, "France" chapter, part 4/4 [The following is the final installment of the excerpted chapter on "France" from _Internet Digital Libraries: the International Dimension_ (Boston and London : Artech House, December, 1996). [Parts 1 and 2 last month described the BPI, INIST, the BMLyon, FRANTEXT / ARTFL , the IRCAM / Institut de Recherche et Coordination Acoustique - Musique, Minitel, the Ministry of Culture's work, and the BIBLIO-FR econference; Part 3 the BNF, and the possibility of a new BN d'Art. [Here, in this concluding Part 4: Internet Digital Libraries, the International Dimension -- Some Common Themes in the French Case.] ** Some Common Themes in the French Case. The common themes suggested by these examples of Digital Libraries in France are several. The first is a common interest in the exhibition of what is a remarkable national cultural heritage. French pride in their nation's cultural achievement, particularly the long history of this record, is enormous, and is well - illustrated in the development of the French approach to the construction of Digital Libraries. A second strand, though, somewhat modifies this first: multi - lingual access is of great concern to the French -- almost all of their Digital Libraries efforts which can be found online provide some form of multi - lingual access. This perhaps is an admission of the degree of difficulty and limited reach of their own national language: the French themselves at times are even less confident in this regard than foreigners are. But it also shows an understanding of the role of their nation in a multi - national world, an understanding not shown by English - language nations: the rest of the world doesn't speak the French language -- and the French appear to realize that if they are to communicate with the outside non - French world they at least must do so in the language of the users. A third, particularly - French, strand in Digital Libraries development is the enormous prestige accorded there to digital affairs as a national priority. Interest in the digital revolution is high in most places in the world now, but few have placed it so high on the national development agenda as have the French. It takes the form of a personal crusade in Paris, among some decision - makers: the French ambassador to the US and the national Minister of Culture both have posted messages to BIBLIO - FR, the French librarians' e - conference -- the prime minister of the country himself chaired the October 1995 meeting which decreed that the Internet would be brought too all French citizens for the price of a local telephone call in 1996. Politicians elsewhere give Cyberspace much lip service, but few outside those in the US have become this personally involved. Libraries and librarians in France never have been considered separate from governmental functions and certainly concerns, as they have in the US. In France culture is a national concern, with its own national Ministry, civil servants, statutes and administrative structures. The French would not consider libraries to be a matter for uncontrolled private enterprise any more than they would consider this for hospitals or schools. They even have difficulty imagining telecommunications, originally considered a national security matter of high priority, to be a candidate for privatization and reduced government control. The general attitude toward government control and active participation is very different in France from the US, but perhaps is more similar to its situation elsewhere: France and other countries did not have a Thoreau who taught that "that government is best which governs least". Digitization, insofar as it became a French national priority, logically would be imposed upon French schools and hospitals and libraries, following a political logic found elsewhere and considered strange perhaps only in the US. There is, finally, central government involvement and support for Digital Libraries and online efforts generally. In the US, where the national central government sponsored the earliest Internet beginnings, subsequent developments have been funded largely by private industry, and now private industry seems to be taking over the enterprise as a whole. The French model, then, insofar as nations elsewhere also have strong central government participation in anything digital or networked -- at least in its beginnings overseas -- may be highly relevant to other non - US cases, and perhaps even more relevant. References: [1] See the online version of the exhibit at http://www.bnf.fr/loc/bnf0001.htm and, Tesnie`re, Marie - He'le`ne and Prosser Gifford, eds., _Creating French Culture: Treasures from the Bibliothe`que nationale de France_, New Haven: Yale University Press, c1995, ISBN 0 - 300 - 06283 - 4; although this thesis is, like anything by or about the French, controversial -- see Kessler, Jack, "Treasures of the Bibliothe`que Nationale at the Library of Congress, and now on W3 / the WorldWideWeb", _FYIFrance_, January 15, 1996, gopher://library.berkeley.edu:72/00/ejrnls/FYIFrance/1996/FYIFrance.01.1 5.96, ISSN 1071 - 5916. [2] Melot, Michel, "Les Nouveaux Enjeux de la Normalisation", _Bulletin des Bibliothe`ques de France_, Vol. 38, No. 5, 1993, p.10 -- text extract appearing here has been translated by Jack Kessler. [3] Tre'sors de la Langue Franc,aise -- http://www.ciril.fr/inalf- bin/wncgi/tlf-showps?main.tlf . [4] http://gopher.well.sf.ca.us:70/0/Publications/FYIFrance/fyi.93.05.15 . [5] Collard, Claude, Isabelle Giannattasio and Michel Melot, _Les Images dans les Bibliothe`ques_, Paris: Editions du Cercle de la Librairie, 1995, ISBN 2765405778. [Footnotes have been omitted here.] XXX The book's full outline: Internet Digital Libraries: The International Dimension by Jack Kessler, kessler@well.sf.ca.us Part I: Setting the Stage Chapter 1: The Internet Goes Public -- A New Story, Digital Information Chapter 2: Digitization in Libraries -- An Old Story, Information and Libraries Chapter 3: Incunabula -- The Development of Digital Libraries in the US Part II: Specifics -- National Chapter 4: France -- Flexible Centralization Chapter 5: Singapore -- Rigid Centralization Chapter 6: China -- Chinese Uniqueness Chapter 7: India -- An Awakening Giant Chapter 8: Australia -- The Antipodes, and the Sheer Reach of Digital Information Chapter 9: Thailand -- The Blending of Worlds, Third and Other Chapter 10: The UK -- Crowded Pipes Chapter 11: Hungary -- Phenomenon of the Stranger Chapter 12: Japan -- Investing vs. Consuming Chapter 13: Indonesia -- The Rest of Asia, and the World Chapter 14: National Government -- the NSF Digital Libraries Projects, in the US Part III: Specifics -- International Chapter 15: Language Chapter 16: Politics and Political Structures Chapter 17: Technical Standards Chapter 18: Business Chapter 19: International Organizations Part IV. Generalities -- International Chapter 20: Media and Messages -- Is the Pipe Neutral? Chapter 21: Libraries and Information -- Warehouses and Services? Chapter 22: Human Users -- Fitting Something New In -- Wine and Bottles, Chickens and Eggs Appendix A: French Libraries Online -- the vast range of possibilities for Digital Libraries access overseas, including some not on the Internet but nonetheless Digital and accessible. Appendix B: Electronic Conferences in France -- professional development possibilities online -- the future for the Digital Library, in any country -- one national example. Appendix C: A Small Statistical Essai -- a "try" or "attempt" at not answering but at least asking a few general questions about the phenomenally - expanding international use of the Internet, based loosely on some brave statistics - gathering efforts which others have undertaken. Appendix D: Digital Libraries so - called -- some unsophisticated "content analysis". Glossary Annotated Bibliography and Resource List General Index Ordering information: from the publishers at http://www.artech-house.com . The ISBN number is 0-89006-875-5. Merry Christmas, everyone. Jack Kessler, kessler@well.sf.ca.us XXX FYI France (sm)(tm) e - newsletter ISSN 1071 - 5916 * | FYI France (sm)(tm) is a monthly electronic newsletter, | published since 1992 as a small - scale, personal, | experiment, in the creation of large - scale | "information overload", by Jack Kessler. Any material / \ written by me which appears in FYI France may be ----- copied and used by anyone for any good purpose, so // \\ long as, a) they give me credit and show my e - mail --------- address and, b) it isn't going to make them money: if // \\ if it is going to make them money, they must get my permission in advance, and share some of the money which they get with me. Use of material written by others requires their permission. FYI France archives are at http://infolib.berkeley.edu (search for FYIFrance), or via gopher to infolib.berkeley.edu 72 (path: 3. Electronic Journals (Library-Oriented)/ 6. FYIFrance/ , or http://www.univ-rennes1.fr/LISTES/biblio-fr@univ-rennes1.fr/ (BIBLIO-FR econference archive), or via telnet to a.cni.org , login brsuser (PACS / PACS-L econference archive), or at http://www.fyifrance.com . Suggestions, reactions, criticisms, praise, and poison - pen letters all will be gratefully received at kessler@well.sf.ca.us . Copyright 1992- by Jack Kessler, all rights reserved.