Jules Verne Forum

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Re: A Modest Proposal

From: James D. Keeline <keeline~at~adnc.com>
Date: Wed, 09 Feb 2000 12:34:08 -0800
To: Jules Verne Forum <jvf~at~math.technion.ac.il>

Norm Wolcott wrote:
>
> Thus we see that 100 pages = 5 megabytes. A 300 page Vernian is therefore
> 15 megabytes at a resoloution suitable for OCR. For a reading copy 200 dpi
> (Fax fine) is adequate and a book would be 10 Meg. Transmitting 10 meg
> files is routine on the internet and no pain at all if you are on a
> network. While attachments of such size can be emailed, it would be more
> convenient if the files wre available in a central location. If those in
> possession of the "best" public domain xlation could scan it and post it,
> then anyone could download it. There are numerous "free" sites where 15 or
> 20 meg are dispensed. Anyone can get 15 meg at Geocities.com, and I am sure
> there are others. If necessary files could be rotated in for a week or two
> according to a schedule which could be posted on JVF.

        I think storage is the least significant problem. I have a
        provider (http://www.simplenet.com) hosting my personal web
        pages (http://www.keeline.com) which offers virtually unlimi-
        ted storage space for $30/month. At work I have a DSL con-
        nection which makes receiving large files a small matter.
        If there are people willing to supply the files, I can host
        the page. We will want to have some kind of system to keep
        the file names consistent. It would probably be best to
        store the scans in a single folder or a file compressed with
        one of the popular algorithms (ie .ZIP or .SIT).

        A more likely problem is the fact that sometimes the books
        are scarce or fragile enough that some may not want to risk
        damaging them through scanning (though it is no more harmful
        than photocopying).

        I recently received a set of photocopies of MISTRESS BRANICAN
        from the reporter who purchased an early or first American
        printing (I think it was a first) for donation to the local
        public library because of the story's San Diego connection.

> The problem is illustrated by "A Field of Ice" (I don't even know which
> book this title refers to) was going on ebay in the 1874 edition for $450.
> I don't even know if this is a good or bad xlation, and at this price I
> will certainly not find out. What I am proposing here is that the
> community sort of act like the medieval monks who had to deposit a book in
> the box before they could borrow one. Here those with the valuable xlations
> would "deposit" them and in turn all scholars/amateurs/wannabes would have
> them available. For my own part if any such scans become available I would
> make every effort to get them OCR'ed into Project Gutenberg, with suitable
> credit to JVF.

        A FIELD OF ICE is part of THE ADVENTURES OF CAPTAIN HATTERAS
        and I don't find the book to be especially scarce. I tried
        to auction a copy on eBay and it didn't even meet a modest
        reserve (considerably below the price you mention). I think
        that the copy I offered was a very early reprint but possibly
        not an 1874 printing. Of course, the seller on eBay might
        have looked at a copyright message and drawn the conclusion
        that it was an early printing. Thus, the seller and bidders
        could have been misled by faulty information. At the same
        time there is at least one JV seller on eBay who really knows
        his stuff and attracts some good bids for scarce items.

> PG, usually ignored by academia because of its public domain bias, would
> like to support the academic community. This looks like it might be a
> possibility: a JVF endorsed PG english edition of Verne.!

        It would seem that an important initial goal would be to come
        up with a list of the books with variant titles and names of
        translators (when known) so that some commentary could be made
        as to the quality of the translations. This is where the
        bilingual members of the JVF would be needed as I read only a
        smattering of French and would not be qualified to evaluate
        the translations.

> For those who have not prepared an OCR text, the level of effort
> probably goes something like this:
> Initial scans 15%
> 1st cut OCR 25%
> 1st level corrections 50%
> Final corrections and proofing 10%
>
> So that anyone who contributes the 1st 15% has started the project rolling.
> Any takers?
>
> Internet Mail: nwolcott~at~post.harvard.edu -- this is a mail forwarding
> address for messages lessthan 2 MB. For longer messages or attachments use
> nwolcott~at~kreative.net -- the current ISP.

        James

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Received on Wed 09 Feb 2000 - 22:41:54 IST

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