The Baen Free Library is a digital library of the

science fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imagination, imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, Paral ...

and

fantasy Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction involving magical elements, typically set in a fictional universe and sometimes inspired by mythology and folklore. Its roots are in oral traditions, which then became fantasy literature and drama ...

publishing house Baen Books where 61 e-books as of June 2016 (112 e-books as of December 2008) can be downloaded free in a number of formats, without copy protection. It was founded in late 1999 by science fiction writer Eric Flint and

publisher Publishing is the activity of making information, literature, music, software and other content available to the public for sale or for free. Traditionally, the term refers to the creation and distribution of printed works, such as books, newsp ...

Jim Baen to determine whether the availability of books free of charge on the

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encourages or discourages the sale of their paper books. The Baen Free Library represents an experiment in the field of

intellectual property Intellectual property (IP) is a category of property that includes intangible creations of the human intellect. There are many types of intellectual property, and some countries recognize more than others. The best-known types are patents, cop ...

and

copyright A copyright is a type of intellectual property that gives its owner the exclusive right to copy, distribute, adapt, display, and perform a creative work, usually for a limited time. The creative work may be in a literary, artistic, education ...

. It appears that sales of both the e-books made available free and other books by the same author, even from a different publisher, increase when the electronic version is made available free of charge. Baen Ebooks also sells individual e-books and a subscription-based e-book program. The books in the Free Library are available via the website for Baen Ebooks in various formats including

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, Rich Text Format, and EPUB as well as unencrypted .mobi The domain name mobi is a generic top-level domain (gTLD) in the Domain Name System (DNS) of the Internet. Its name is derived from the adjective ''mobile''. The domain was approved by ICANN on 11 July 2005, and is managed by the mTLD global r ... for

Kindle Kindle may refer to: Companies and products * Amazon Kindle, an e-reader line by Amazon.com ** Kindle Direct Publishing, an e-book publishing platform by Amazon ** Kindle Store, an online e-book e-commerce store by Amazon * Kindle Banking Systems, ...

Baen CDs

In 2002, Baen also started adding CD-ROMs into some hardcovers of newest titles in successful series. They contain the complete series of novels preceding the printed book (for those books that were the latest in a series), other works by the same author, some works by other authors, and multimedia bonuses. The CD-ROMs have a prominent permissive copyright license which expressly encourages free-of-charge copying and sharing, including over the Internet. Some of these CDs also contain MP3 audiobook versions. As of 2015 CD 24 ''Invasion'' published in 2010 was the last promotional ''Baen CD''. * CD 01 Honorverse also contains '' The Shadow of the Lion'' and '' 1632'' among others. * CD 06 Wind Rider's Oath and CD 06b ''

Shadow of Saganami ''The Shadow of Saganami'' is a science fiction novel by American writer David Weber, published in 2004. Set in the Honorverse, it is the first in the ''Saganami Island'' series, spun off from the main Honor Harrington series. It debuted at # ...

'' were published in 2004. * CD 13 '' 1634: The Baltic War'' and CD 13 '' The Best of Jim Baen's Universe 2006'' were published in 2006. * CD 22 '' Mission of Honor'' also contains ''Exodus'' and ''

1633 Events January–March * January 20 – Galileo Galilei, having been summoned to Rome on orders of Pope Urban VIII, leaves for Florence for his journey. His carriage is halted at Ponte a Centino at the border of Tuscany, where ...

'' among others. * CD 23 '' 1635: The Eastern Front'' features the 1632 and Heirs of Alexandria series among others. * CD 24 ''

Cryoburn ''Cryoburn'' is a science fiction novel by American writer Lois McMaster Bujold, first published in October 2010. Part of the Vorkosigan Saga, it was nominated for the Hugo Award for Best Novel in 2011,

'' was replaced by CD 24 ''Invasion'' in the Secret World Chronicles.

References

External links

Baen Free Library
{{Ebooks Science fiction organizations Science fiction websites American digital libraries Libraries established in 1999 1999 establishments in the United States Baen Books