Randy Cabell asked about whether the Library of Virginia could put its late, lamented Virginia Cavalcade magazine on line for free viewing. There are, alas, several reasons, some related to cost and some to copyright questions, why we cannot do that now. Virtually every article contains one or more illustrations for which the library paid a one-time reproduction fee to another library, museum, archive, or private owner, and that means that we cannot reproduce those images in any format without identifying current owners (if we could find them) and obtaining new permissions (if owners would be willing to grant them for online publication) and paying a new (and no doubt larger) reproduction fee. Removing those images would degrade the quality of the articles. Moreover, there is some question about reproduction rights to the text under the current very complex and contested copyright laws, which might be more complicated by the sad fact that a great many authors are now dead and cannot give permission and all of whose heirs (if they could be identified and found) might have to be agreeable. We also in these very tough times do not have staff enough to scan, check, index, and mount the approximately 6,000 illustrated pages. It is not so easy as it appears or as compiling a private online resource that is not integrated into the several million images and even more records of other kinds that are already part of the Library of Virginia's Web site. Making digital resources available in a way that allows ease of searching and reproduction is a surprisingly expensive proposition. Unlike a magazine published on paper, an online publisher incurs a long-term commitment of money and staff to maintain the electronic files, to guard against what somebody aptly described as "click rot," and to reformat or monitor the transmission of all of the electronic material from server to server as the computers require replacement every few years. Our staff has learned that that process almost never goes as smoothly as promised. As a sometime contributor to the magazine and a longtime reader, I regret this circumstance as much as anybody. On the other hand, money from the Library of Virginia Foundation has enabled the Library of Virginia to create a new and different quarterly magazine entitled Broadside that features short articles about the resources and programs of the Library and about the history of Virginia that the Library exists to preserve and present to the people. For more details and how to subscribe to this free publication, please visit the Broadside's electronic home at http://www.lva.virginia.gov/whatwedo/pubs/broadside/index.htm Brent Tarter The Library of Virginia [log in to unmask] Please visit the Library of Virginia's Web site at http://www.lva.virginia.gov ______________________________________ To subscribe, change options, or unsubscribe please see the instructions at http://listlva.lib.va.us/archives/va-hist.html