For libraries

Reading-room copies for public and campus libraries.

General Information licenses the full catalog to public library systems, university reading rooms, and community-college libraries — with a plain one-page agreement and pricing that fits the collection.

What we license

Three ways to hold the catalog.

Every institution reads a little differently. The license is written to fit the shape of the reading, not the other way round.

Reading-room PDF

Unlimited on-site reading of every title in the catalog — kept on the reference terminals or the reading-room laptops. One PDF per title, watermarked with the library's name on the colophon page.

Circulating ePub

Circulation-ready ePub files that hand off to your existing digital circulation system — the same shelf your patrons already use for other titles. No new patron account, no new app.

Reference reprint

Reference-shelf reprint

Short-run print permission for the reference collection — a one-page reprint license that lets your bindery run bound copies for the reference shelf, with the standard colophon acknowledgement.

Pricing

Three tiers, quoted plainly.

Prices are set to the size of the reading, not to the number of clicks — request a quote and one will be sent by return, with the license text attached.

Small

Up to 5 branches

The full catalog in Reading-room PDF and Circulating ePub, for a single-library or small-system license. Includes annual re-send of the catalog when new titles are added, and a one-page license signed by the editor.

Request pricing

Regional

Up to 25 branches

For county library systems, university library systems, and regional consortia. All three license formats included, along with MARC records on request and a per-title trial for new acquisitions committees.

Request pricing

System / State

25+ branches or state library

For state libraries and large public-library systems. Includes campus-wide reference access, state-branded colophon acknowledgement, and an annual editorial letter on what is being added to the catalog and why.

Request pricing

What arrives

What lands in your inbox.

A signed one-page license, addressed to the librarian on record.
A downloadable archive with PDFs and ePubs of every title in the catalog.
A colophon page with your institution's name, printed on the first spread of every file.
An annual re-send of the catalog when new titles are added, at no additional cost inside the license term.

Questions

A few things librarians ask.

Can we get MARC records?: Yes, on request. MARC records are prepared per-title and sent alongside the file archive at no extra cost.
Do you offer trials?: Yes — one title of your choosing for thirty days, so the acquisitions committee can read the book before the whole catalog is licensed. Write to the editor with the title you would like to see.
Is there DRM?: No. The files are watermarked on the colophon page with the licensee institution's name, and that is the whole of the protection. General Information takes the position that a reference book should open.

Get in touch

Write to the editor.

Institutional enquiries reach the desk at editor@lovegivers.org. A reply, with pricing and the current license text, is usually sent within the working week.

Mailing address: General Information, LLC — [Delaware registered agent address — TBD]