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I had the opportunity to attend an Open Library Developer's Meeting a
couple of weeks ago, and I have written a travel log. From my
conclusion:

   The ultimate idea of Open Library goes far beyond Fred Kilgour's
   original idea of cooperative catalog and OCLC. Yet, at the same
   time, the core of Mr. Kilgour's idea is at the heart of Open
   Library -- a very large, centralized library. I don't believe
   there will ever will be or ever should be one and only one
   library for all of humankind because libraries ultimately serve
   individual constituents, and it is impossible for any single
   institution (read "library") to be all things to all people. On
   the other hand the idea of a large, centralized repository of
   knowledge does have a certain appeal. It can be looked upon as a
   respected authority and a touchstone for ideas. Considering the
   exiting institutions who hold and distribute library-based
   content, Open Library looks like a promising upstart. At the very
   least I believe it will demonstrate what a loosely federated
   network of committed individuals with a diverse sets of skills
   and cooperation can do to solve large problems.

   http://www.library.nd.edu/daiad/morgan/travel/open-library/

There is also an interesting catch phrase describing Open Library,
namely, one Web page for every book ever published.

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Eric Lease Morgan
University Libraries of Notre Dame