On 11/12/2010 4:55 AM, Nordtorp-Madson, Michelle A. wrote
:> Snip< Additionally, there are some museums that are unwilling to put up details and hi-res photos up because of copyright issues. Ah the dread Copyright issue and who actually owns historic items, particularly those in publicly funded institutions (those that are completely privately funded are a different story - don't Hit Me!). Along with the "who owns Human History" issue. There is going to have to be some kind of accommodation made so that both parties come out of this well. Think of all the books that were lost when the Danube flooded and destroyed them. The items we know only from a few black and white photos because war washed across the museums/castles/places where they were kept and they are forever gone and heartbreaking for everyone but should be most for those whose entire lives are devoted to keeping such safe and, hopefully available, to scholars.
The items that are being so desperately protected for their copyright value are simply candles in the wind. Ask the museums in San Francisco about the work they are doing getting their collections up since they Know how vulnerable they are. Here in Oregon we never thought of anything much. Even the big Volcano going off about 20 years ago didn't strike at real populated areas (watch out Seattle though!). However that little shake a few years back put a large library of medieval manuscripts in severe danger as part of the Abbey they are stored, and generously open to the public with request, was severely damaged by a fault we didn't quite realize was there.
Personnel are a problem, but Google and at one time Micro Soft had done a lot to solve the digitization problem to get things up on the web for all of us and EEBO for those who can pay for it. Possibly something similar could be done for items like paintings and other such items could be worked out?
More available knowledge can only be a blessing. Now we have to see how we can make that a blessing for both the holders of the original items and those who want to see but not necessarily touch :-) We need a win/win situation for both because if the originals aren't carefully cared for we all lose, if they aren't known to exist or aren't available except to a very few, many of us lose.
"Ask ten different scientists about the environment, population control, genetics, and you'll get ten different answers, but there's one thing every scientist on the planet agrees on. Whether it happens in a hundred years or a thousand years or a million years, eventually our Sun will grow cold and go out. When that happens, it won't just take us. It'll take Marilyn Monroe, and Lao-Tzu, and Einstein," Babylon 5, Sheridan, Infection The same applies to natural disaster anywhere on the planet at one time or another. It will happen and it will take all that lovely copyright material with it and not care at all. Check with the Babylonians to see how much of their culture survived.
Wanda _______________________________________________ h-costume mailing list h-costume@mail.indra.com http://mail.indra.com/mailman/listinfo/h-costume
