MinDocDigPro

MinDocDigPro is The Minnstf Document Digitization Project. This project has two major goals:

1. Preserve MNstf documents via digitization.
2. Make MNstf documents widely available on the web.

There are two major challenges:

1. Actually doing all the scanning
2. Securing permission from copyright holders who contributed to the documents

And one minor challenge: Putting the documents up on the web in a reasonably organized and pleasing way.

Scanning

This section might could hold advice on scanning

Copyright

Most people who have contributed to MNstf publications probably did not intend to hold copyright on their contributions. However, some certainly did and we need to be careful about this. The Minnstf board in 2008 came up with clear guidelines on how to handle copyright for Mnstf (including Minicon) publications:

• Images credited to an artist require us to ask the artist for permission to republish (including web posting)
• Text credited to someone, ditto.
• Anything not credited is assumed to be property of Minn-stf. We will, in general, put this up on the web with some sort of permissive license.

In decreasing order of preference, we'd like copyright holders to:

1. Grant Minn-stf all rights to their works. This is best because then the work becomes Mnstf's and we can do whatever we want with it.
2. Grant Minn-stf the right to make their works available via some sort of permissive license, such as those from Creative Commons. In this case, we need to know which sorts of restrictions the copyright holder is interested in, such as:
   • Requiring that the work cannot be used commercially
   • Requiring that the work cannot be modified
   • Requiring that attribution always be given when the work is shown
3. Grant Minn-stf the right to display their works on the web while retaining full copyright restrictions.

When contacting copyright holders, the ideal thing is to give them all of these options and see what the best we can get is. However, use your judgment. It's not always a good idea to send someone a really long e-mail with lots of complicated copyright questions in it, for instance. We'd much rather get granted just web-publishing rights than never get a reply at all.

Organization of the project

Note here what you intend to work on and what you've finished. This prevents duplication of effort. We will also use this page to keep track of what copyright holders have been contacted and what their response has been.

Work reserved

Matt Strait is working on the Minicon 39-43 program books. He's not sure if he has all of the pocket programs and PRs from those years, though.

Work completed

Say whether (1) the document is digitized (2) the document has cleared copyright hurdles and can be put on the web (3) the document is actually up on the web now.

Rune

None so far.

Minicon program books

• The Minicon 39 program book is digitized, but held up by copyright.
• The Minicon 40 program book is digitized, but held up by copyright.
• The Minicon 41 program book is digitized, but held up by copyright.
• The Minicon 42 program book is digitized, but held up by copyright.
• The Minicon 43 program book, with the exception of Wayne Barlowe's art, is available at mnstf.org/minicon43/programbook/

Minicon pocket programs

• The Minicon 43 pocket program is available at mnstf.org/minicon43/programbook/

Minicon progress reports

• The Minicon 43 PR1 is available at mnstf.org/minicon43/programbook/. PR2 is not on the web yet.

Bozo Bus Tribune

• All 4 issues of the Minicon 43 Bozo Bus Tribune are available at mnstf.org/minicon43/programbook/.

Copyright answers

List copyright holders' responses in alphabetical order by last name. Check this list before sending any queries about the document you are working on. Notes:

1. Some people here may not actually have any of their works in any Mnstf publications, but have given us blanket permission just in case.
2. Please distinguish between the case of a copyright holder answering a question (e.g. "can we distribute your stuff under a Creative Commons license?") with "no" and the case where they did not answering the question at all.
3. Note the approximate date that the person made their statement. It is probably not generally safe to assume that they apply to future works.

• Karen Cooper (late 2008): Ok with web posting. No answer about CC licensing.
• DDB (late 2008): Ok with web posting. Answer pending about CC licensing.
• Ken Fletcher (late 2008): Ok with web posting. Answer pending about CC licensing.
• Deb Geisler (late 2008): Any Creative Commons license is ok, "no worries".
• Carol Kennedy (late 2008): Grants us all rights.
• Greg Ketter (late 2008): Grants us all rights.
• James Kuehl (late 2008): Ok with web posting. No answer about CC licensing.
• Jason Malgren (late 2008): Grants us full rights.
• Sue Mason (late 2008): For the Minicon 38 chapbook, Creative Commons is fine, as long as people aren't using her work for profit.
• Laramie Sasseville (late 2008): Ok with web posting, ok with CC license. Would appreciate a link to dreamspell.net.
• Geri Sullivan (late 2008): Ok with web posting, ok with CC license.