Dear Kelton,
Sounds like a good idea. You volunteering to edit it?
Or we could fill in the OM FAQ with info from the list. And pix from
members.
Or...
Tom
On 11 Apr 2001, at 8:13, sayeth Kelton Rhoads <olympus@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
> Gary said:
>
> >>I'm afraid that when there is free content available (like we currently
> >>have), the incentive to produce something for publication dwindles.
> >>There is too much uncertainity about whether the effort will be
> >>profitable, since many folks will rather opt for free content, even if
> >>its limited in some way.
> >>
> >>Gary Reese
> >>Las Vegas, NV
>
> I've been waiting for you to weigh in, Gary! If true, how do you explain
> the burgeoning publications on Nikon, Zeiss, Leica, and others? Why do I
> own two Nikons and two Nikon collector guides? Why do I own one Leica and
> five Leica guides? I think we need a psychologist to answer this question!
>
> Then Chris said:
>
> >>Such a book would be written by someone with an broad knowledge of
> >>the subject and an ability to research what he or she did not know
> >>already.
>
> I'd also like to point out how easy that research would be, if such a
> book were written by a listmember. Said listmember would have all the
> contacts necessary, right here! But there might be an even better,
> easier, more satisfactory way of making a high-quality OM book. Chris
> said:
>
> >> A successful book could not be a compendium of contributions from
> interested parties.
>
> In my field there are thousands of highly successful multi-author books.
> By a "multi-author" book, I mean a book that is a compilation of chapters
> on distinct but related topics, written by different experts, and then
> edited by a single person (or two or three) for consistency of style. In
> my field, these books are highly prized because they represent a variety
> of expert authors, each writing in his or her area of acknowledged
> expertise. (In fact, I just finished writing a chapter in such an
> multi-author book myself. I was one author of perhaps 12 who wrote the
> book; each one of us had a single chapter and a single topic for which we
> were responsible, but each chapter integrated into the overall theme of
> the book. Each of us had space and stylistic constraints to which we had
> to conform, so a uniform structure was imposed by the author.)
>
> Imagine a book where Gary wrote a chapter on lens quality, Hans wrote a
> chapter on lens variations or system components, Mark wrote a chapter on
> the early system plans and the M-1, Tom wrote a chapter on collecting,
> John wrote a chapter on body variations, Doris wrote a chapter on OM
> bargain hunting, Peter wrote a chapter on OM literature, and so on. (I
> don't mean to be 'volunteering' my friends, here, or leaving anyone out;
> I'm just writing down the first names that pop into my mind.) You could
> ask each OM website owner to write a chapter in the area of his or her
> greatest interest. You could add additional topics: coatings, coverings,
> instructions, filters, astrophotography, troubleshooting, you name it.
> With each person writing a single chapter in the area of strongest
> expertise, you'd have a fascinating book, and at low risk to each
> individual contributor (after all, you'd only be into the project for a
> single chapter!). An editor--preferably someone with the verbal skills of
> a Dorris Fang--could assemble the project. Upon publication, sales could
> be tallied yearly and the proceeds split amongst the authors.
>
> Like I said, all the brain power we need is right here, on the list! And
> we have one other thing that a lot of online communities don't have: a
> tight-knit, cooperative, sharing culture. I think a cooperative effort
> like this would be difficult for most online communities, but perhaps not
> for this one. I think it could happen. We could architect this thing!
>
> Kelton
>
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