There simply arent enough motivated people to getK. I'll remember to do so. ;)
their collective heads together and agree how to index
this stuff and to catalog the ever expanding mass of
OGC. Unless the publishers provide the content to a
"compiler" I just dont see this happening as a
practical matter. Of course, in hypothetical school
world, sure, you dont need the publishers. Some
motivated team could get it done. Wake me up when that
happens.
Fine, if you as the compiler want to run the risk ofRemember the OGL? The compiler is creating a derivitive work under the Open Gaming License--if a record is objected to, it can be deleted and expundged in a matter of minutes.
doing it wrong and getting sued by someone.
That isnt the problem. This "bunch of volunteers" youI simply disagree. Americans have a willingness to volunteer and "do something", but a paucity of opportunity. (Or did I miss the site that launched with a "help us build a live OGC database" bit?)
are talking about are illusory. They dont exist. Or
this would already have happened.
This is probably a good point to branch off onto a vocabulary bit. For the sake of discussion, a logical division needs to be made between an OGC database--a work that collects OGC from several different sources and allows multipled edits--and an Open Gaming Directory, which merely points to what work have what OGC.
For a Database, the OGL needs to be followed--and that means no trademarks, no PI, et cetera. This is the most useful form for the end-user, and the one that causes the most discord for publishers.
For a directory, however, the OGL does not neccessarily need to be followed--which means that trademarks, PI, et cetera can already be included. What most of you are looking for when you talk about a directory already exists, and has for some time: the Open Gaming Exchange's "OGC Directory."
Take a look at the following entry:
http://www.ogexchange.com/OGCDirectory.php?pid=31
It lists publisher, product information, and enumerates without duplicating the OGC from _Relics & Rituals_. You can even look up the ISBN and Section 15, to boot.
So, if we want a directory, we've already got one--it just needs to be fleshed out. But that's not happening at any great speed--because, IMO, it is of limited utility to the end-user. OSS survives because computer programers have needs that the software fills--while the OGC directory is useful and fairly well-structured, it doesn't give a lot to the average roleplayer.
(I think a lot of your comments are basd on a grammatical difference. I agree, for most of them--a directory won't add that much in sales, especially since the hypothetical end-user will be looking for a rule that they like, and won't really connect to the product if they don't see the rule.)
I just see practical problems that I have offeredActually, the OpenDie logo is fairly mature. It's just not publicized enough, for lack of interest. (There's even the Prometheus System logo, which could work as a drop-in d20 replacement if there was cause for such a thing.)
suggestions for how to solve. The fact that the
practical problems I see conflicts with pie in the sky
dreams some have of this utopian world where a group
will form that will do all this work for free and do
it perfectly. Heck, this list couldnt even agree on an
alternate d20 logo. Remember that? I just dont see
this happening by a volunteer group alone.
Ignoring the publishers for a moment: Freelancers and semi-professionals who don't have a bankrolled company behind them could very well create an OGC database, as they'd have immediate use for the result of their labor. Look at the Fancc--it's not exactly perfect, but by and large they've done very well for themselves, all volunteering.
And if you can come up with a business reasonI think, rather than talk about a hypothetical database or directory, those of us who think it's a good idea need to open up a place where such a database can grow--but before we do that, we need to figure out some ground rules and structure.
why publishers should be involved (which,
unfortunately I dont see) then that increases the
likelyhood of the database becoming a reality.
But, with it being 3:14 am here on the East Coast, I'm not about to attempt that tonight.
DM
_______________________________________________ Ogf-l mailing list [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://mail.opengamingfoundation.org/mailman/listinfo/ogf-l
