"Function:
The WHOLE EARTH CATALOG functions as an evaluation & access device. With it, the user should know better what is worth getting & where and how to do the getting. An item is listed in the CATALOG if it is deemed:
Useful as a tool,
Relevant to independent education,
High quality or low cost,
Not already common knowledge,
Easily available by mail.
Catalog listings are continually revised according to the experience & suggestions of CATALOG users & staff.
Purpose:
We are as gods & might as well get good at it. So far, remotely done power & glory—as via government, big business, formal education, church—has succeeded to the point where gross defects obscure actual gains. In response to this dilemma & to these gains a realm of intimate, personal power is developing—power of the individual to conduct his own education, find his own inspiration, shape his own environment & share his adventure with whoever is interested. Tools that aid this process are sought & promoted by the WHOLE EARTH CATALOG."

(From Goodreads)