Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.2 9/18/84; site calmasd.UUCP Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!bonnie!akgua!whuxlm!harpo!decvax!ittvax!dcdwest!sdcsvax!sdcc3!sdcc6!calmasd!dmm From: dmm@calmasd.UUCP (David M. MacMillan) Newsgroups: net.wobegon Subject: Wouldn't it be nice if ... Message-ID: <475@calmasd.UUCP> Date: Tue, 2-Jul-85 17:12:42 EDT Article-I.D.: calmasd.475 Posted: Tue Jul 2 17:12:42 1985 Date-Received: Fri, 5-Jul-85 06:52:27 EDT Reply-To: dmm@ra.UUCP (David M. MacMillan) Organization: Calma Company, San Diego, CA Lines: 41 Though I am new to this forum, I have for some time had a thought in the "wouldn't it be nice if ..." category. Perhaps it is an absurd thought (given the economics), but anyway, here it is. Wouldn't it be nice if all of the old PHCs were available on cassette? Certainly it would, but is it practical? With something like 500 shows, at two cassettes each, few people could afford an entire set (I couldn't). Nonetheless, I would like to have selected back issues; Jean Redpath shows, for instance, or the 1984 christmas show. Now, if enough people wanted a few back issues, it just might be possible to convince Minnessota Public Radio to make them all available. A computer network forum might be the ideal place to evaluate such an idea. As I (simplistically?) see it, the costs for MPR would be (1) preparing a cursory listing of the tapes, (2) mailing it to Wireless subscribers, and (3) reproducing the tapes manually on a high-speed recorder. They could realize no economy of scale. The packaging needn't be fancy - just a plain tape case with an item number and a copyright notice. The advantages to MPR would be (1) satisfaction of many devoted PHC listeners, (2) consequent further plugging of the program by same listeners, (3) preservation of the programs in the case of a fire at the MPR vault, and (4) a chance for literature students such as myself to do some "research" into PHC and try to make the stuffy academic community take note. Additionally, public radio stations might be persuaded to buy fairly complete sets, as enticing material for on-the-air pledge drives if nothing else. MPR's disadvantages would be (1) only marginal profitability, and (2) increased pirating and other copyright violations. Another problem, I suppose, is that I have neither the time nor the political expertise to coordinate any attempt to persuade MPR. As I said, this is an idea in the "wouldn't it be nice ..." category. Also, I don't know my copyright law well enough to know if MPR would have difficulty in reproducing the work of guest performers. Is this idea ahead of, behind, or just plain beside its time? I welcome your comments.