/about/oln
Type: /type/page
body: value: The goal of the OLN project is to develop an identifier scheme that can be used for Open Library. It is being discussed on [the ol-lib mailing list](http://mail.archive.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/ol-lib).

Desiderata:

 * Language-independent
 * Unique
 * Recognizable (like ISBNs, which can be picked out of a page of text)
 * Big (support many millions of books and items)
 * Support for multiple levels of FRBR

The OLNs will probably be arbitrary, not generated from any particular fact about the book.

## OLN Format

Identifiers are created by combining:

 * The string "OL"
 * An integer that hasn't yet been used as an identifier
 * A capital letter signifying the type of object it is, where:
    * "M" stands for manifestation
    * "E" stands for expression
    * "W" stands for work
    * "A" stands for author

Examples:

  * OL1W 
  * OL92M
  * OL9238923892389289388883W
title: Open Library Number (OLN)