HathiTrust Digital Library

HathiTrust has several viewing options for non-copyright volumes. Switch between them using the "View" button at the bottom of the screen.

• Plain Text view allows for copy/paste of text and is suggested for use with screen readers.
• Image view provides what the PDF will look like when downloaded
• Choose between Scroll, Flip, or Thumbnails for navigating between PDF pages

HathiTrust has several download options for non-copyright volumes. Log in first with your SU NetID for full-volume downloading options.

Click the Download menu on the left to see all downloading options.

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.

HathiTrust scans titles regardless of their copyright status. This ensures long-term preservation of information for the public, facilitates use of print volumes by users with print disabilities, and enables any user to investigate the relevance of a print volume before borrowing it from the library. 

If you find a volume that isn't available full-view:

• 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.

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.