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Syracuse University Libraries

HathiTrust Digital Library: Viewing and Downloading PDFs

Viewing full-text

Not all of HathiTrust's resources are available in full-text. Look for titles with "Full View" Full view to get to the full-text!

Many viewing options are available, including Flip, Page by Page, Scroll, Thumbnail, or Plain Text. 

Open the PDF below for more information.

Title not available in full-text?

Try the following:

  • Search within the full-text to see if the book would be useful
  • Click "Find in a library" to find it in a library near you.

How to download PDFs for full view items

To download an entire book:

Download screen

login required

  • On the left under “Get this Book,” click on “download whole book (PDF)”.
  • Wait for the PDF to be built (could be 1-2 minutes)
  • Click “Download PDF”
    • Explorer or Firefox: either open the PDF or save it
    • Chrome: PDF will automatically download

 To download a single page:

Option not available in “thumbnail” view setting.

  • On the left under “Get this Book,” click on “download this page (PDF)”
  • A PDF will open in a new window or tab in your browser.
  • Print or save the PDF. (look either in the top right or bottom right of the page, depending on your browser.)

Copying text from HathiTrust items

Downloaded PDFs from HathiTrust are image PDFs. They are not text enabled.

To copy text from HathiTrust volumes into a text document:

  • navigate to the desired page in the on-screen view (not the PDF)
  • toggle the desired page over to plain text view
  • copy and paste into your text document 

For print-disabled patrons using screen readers, please see our Accessibility page.

Need help?

Confused about logging in, searching, or downloading?

Why are some titles "search only?"

HathiTrust scans titles regardless of their copyright status.  For works in the public domain or not otherwise protected under copyright (orphaned works, government documents, etc.), HathiTrust allows full-text view.

It is considered a transformative use under US Copyright law to provide a searchable index the full-text of books and other materials. However, HathiTrust would be breaking the law if it provided full-text view of volumes still protected by copyright.