• Digital Format
• Publishing Purposes
• Content Demands
• Personnel Demands
• Publisher Options
• Print Format
• Context Choices

Appropriate Technologies

Digital Format*

Good: Fast, cheap, easy, certain of design, integrates well with existing process

Bad: Not improvable, not "chunkable," static, hard to index, hard to link to or from, retains page as conceptual model

Good: Fast, cheap, easy (from WP file), easily indexed by search engines

Bad: Usually not pretty, "chunkable" as chapters only, may see higher expectations ("why not better"?)

Good: Fairly easy with minimal investment; easily indexed by outside world; can often be done by typesetters at minimal cost; tailoring for content possible

Bad: May face higher expectations; some learning curve; some unpredictable new challenges

Good: Flexible, extensible, future-enhanceable, self-defining

Bad: More costly (now), requiring higher quality control, new skill sets

Appropriate Technologies

Publishing Purposes

Priorities: Lowest reasonable denominator browsers, inexpensive production, externally indexable, standards-based, easy to interconnect

Dismissables: Fixity of design? graphical nuancing? intricacy of interface?

Priorities: Reproducible & extensible production sequence, minimum of labor-intensive steps, highly flexible, rapid to enhance, easy to update, easy to index, easy to secure/ identify in "chunks" for chunk resale

Dismissables: Browser level issues? Standards? Startup cost? Integration with outside world? Customer requirements paramount.

Priorities: Image, flash, cleverness, sound & light, spin; uniquely appropriate/developed interface to content

Dismissables: Cost, time, browser, bandwidth, audience

Appropriate Technologies

Content Demands

Priorities : Easy to carry, comfortable to eye, dependability of authority, etc.

Speed of transmission, interconnections with other content

Priorities: Ease of access, speed of access, degree of integration with rest of world

Dismissables?: Depth of content, quality of interconnections, degree of authority

Priorities: Index strength, ease of customer use, authority of material, consistency of interface

Dismissables?: Portability, flash, eye-ease, readability duration

Appropriate Technologies

Personnel Demands

Advantages: Consistency, coherence, focus, middling expense, likely enthusiasm & "weekend work"

Disadvantages: All eggs in one basket, idiosyncracy of structure, specialist can be bought/ enticed away, tunnel vision, ego-bound

Advantages: Less expensive (using "excess time"), higher stability (more baskets)

Disadvantages: Herding cats, consistency of structure, weak links, non-coherent presentation, internal pettinesses

Advantages: Professionalism, consistency & repeatability, coherent expansion route

Disadvantages: Expensive, possibly less direct control, knowledge required to manage

Appropriate Technologies

Publisher Options

Advantages: Validation, professionalism, predictable quality, better marketing & distribution, copyediting, possible royalties

Disadvantages: Rejections, loss of control, possible delay, peer review/revision

Advantages: Rapid, cheap, full control, potential full profit

Disadvantages: Necessarily amateur at marketing, promotion, distribution, etc.; archiving considerations, intrinsic distrust may prevent links-to

Advantages: Amazon.com and BookInTime doesn't know (or care) that you're a dog, etc.

Disadvantages: Cost, potential prejudice against "vanity press," no external validation (rapidly diminishing as concerns)

Advantages: Amazon.com and BookInTime don't care what you are. A smart agent/ contractor could also do online marketing etc.

Disadvantages: Cost, no print/external validation, history of other validating publications

Advantages: Institutions, organizations, associations, etc. have the available expertise to judge quality. Bonafide imprint of quality

Disadvantages: Potential cronyism, potential prejudice in tenure decisions, no "marketplace validation"

Appropriate Technologies

Print Format

Advantages: For 1000+ pb, 500+ cloth, lower unit cost, higher quality. Better halftone quality. Better customer response.

Disadvantages: Risk of 90% left in warehouse ("bound greenbacks"). Cost of distribution

Advantages: Predictable costs, few warehousing issues, advantages of "in-house" distribution control

Disadvantages: Lower quality; no clothbound; "big win" difficult; requires technical infrastructure

Advantages: At lower runs, lower unit costs; flexible "on-demand" individual publications, no warehouse overruns (even no warehouse)

Disadvantages: Lower quality; no clothbound; harder "big win" (cost never declines to price of paper); may require technical infrastructure

Advantages: Color & expanded material can be on website or CDROM, print-appropriate material in book form

Disadvantages: Archival fears of librarians, necessity of continuous attention; what happens in 2504?

Appropriate Technologies

Context Choices

Advantages: Individualism, pride, royalties

Disadvantages: Easy to be missed (60,000 titles printed/year; 60,000,000 Web pages/year)

Advantages: Larger audience, forward/backward linking, individual and group value, "reflected light"

Disadvantages: Loss of individuality, loss of "journal identity," less "editorial touch" on specific articles/chapters

Advantages: Huge audience, volunteer advertising/linking, likely author pleasure, potential print sale to browsers

Disadvantages: Fear of lost sales, possible "imprint decay," potential of raised expectations (why not all your backlist?)