[bksvol-discuss] Re: If text is too good
- From: Guido Corona <guidoc@xxxxxxxxxx>
- To: bksvol-discuss@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Sat, 4 Sep 2004 12:48:58 -0500
OK gentle folks, please relax. We are all working for the common good.
We are all conscious OF quality. We all want to give the best possible
product to our readers. And 99.9% of submissions are bonified original
scan performed by registered bookshare volunteers under complete legal
conditions.
On the other hand, we should be comfortable raising recurring concerns
about quality as well as about the legality of submissions. These
concerns should be received and read with the same equanimity with which
they were created. I for one have recently submitted books that were
almost perfect. I would not be at all surprised if a volunteer, not used
to the new level of quality seen in so many recent submissions, questioned
the origin of my submissions. I would be delighted to clarify any
misunderstanding. Similarly, if the book in question were the fruit of
someone else's labour, I would not feel threatened by association. I
invite all concerned to relax.
But, oh gentle folks, I should like to take the opportunity to point
your attention to the fact that qualified submissions DO NOT amount to the
totality of the collection. I have in fact seen submissions which clearly
came from the BAEN repository, while not containing the magic word eText.
I have seen a few postings which came likely from commercial etext
facilities, and others that were probable repostings of books originally
submitted to a samizdatian repository north of the 49th parallel.
Similarly, I have seen Bookshare originals appearing on other
repositories, sometimes with the Bookshare riot act left intact at the
top of the file.
The bottom line gentle folks is. . . let us be considerate of one another,
but also be vigilant. Let us take pride in our work, but let us remember
there is a subtle difference between pride and becoming hypersensitive.
Thank you for listening.
Guido
Guido D. Corona
IBM Accessibility Center, Austin Tx.
IBM Research,
Phone: (512) 838-9735
Email: guidoc@xxxxxxxxxxx
Visit my weekly Accessibility WebLog at:
http://www-3.ibm.com/able/weblog/corona_weblog.html
Nolan Crabb <aa3go@xxxxxxxxxxx>
Sent by: bksvol-discuss-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
09/03/2004 03:50 PM
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[bksvol-discuss] Re: If text is too good
At 10:58 AM 9/3/2004, you wrote:
>but the idea that you have is good
>I think, to put your suspition of it in the comments field. Wish I had
>thought of doing that myself.
Well, folks, this is about the most bizarre list I've ever been on. I've
read pensively and sometimes even with real concern, messages here wherein
many almost shrilly cry for higher quality. Then, when that quality is
achieved, others express suspicion that something is somehow illegal about
the submission.
In the case of Deborah Stein's submission, her tremendous ability as a
rather well-known author, assuming this is indeed the Deborah Stein from
the Chicago area, makes her a logical candidate for submitting a book
that's nearly perfect. After all, an author whose books have been
published by major publishing houses is going to understand the value of
well edited work.
I've no idea who did I Robot, but people, let's try celebrating the
quality
rather than raising questions about the legality of the submission. And
better yet, let's be professional enough to contact the submitter directly
with concerns where possible rather than engaging in destructive
speculation on the list.
Nolan Crabb
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