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From: req@warwick.UUCP (Russell Quin)
Newsgroups: net.sf-lovers
Subject: Re: SF Poll Update. Question on Future. Top 20. PLEASE READ.
Message-ID: <283@snow.warwick.UUCP>
Date: Thu, 15-Aug-85 09:32:50 EDT
Article-I.D.: snow.283
Posted: Thu Aug 15 09:32:50 1985
Date-Received: Tue, 20-Aug-85 06:22:55 EDT
References: <7363@watdaisy.UUCP>
Reply-To: req@warwick.UUCP (Russell Quin)
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Organization: Computer Science, Warwick University, UK
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In article <7363@watdaisy.UUCP> gjerawlins@watdaisy.UUCP (Gregory J.E. Rawlins) writes:
>[...]
>Then I started thinking
>wouldn't it be nice to have online access to all this information?  We'd no
>longer have queries like "....what else has s/he written" and the subsequent
>139 replies all saying the same thing.
>[...] Perhaps we could have a [...] moderator who you mail with some keyword
>in the header and request information. We might get really fancy and have it
>all done automagically. Of course with Evelyn Leeper and Jerry Boyajian on the
>net this may be sort of redundant.....
>
>    What do you think?  Since I'm on holiday as of tomorrow (far away from any
>terminals alas) this will have to be opened to net discussion.

1)	It would be interesting - if not useful - to have online access to a
bibliographic database.
Does anyone know if _Books_In_Print_ is available in ,achine readable format?
I wouldn't be surprised, since it already is distributed as microfiche.
2)	I have considered saving reviews & using a keyword look-up system, but
     a: the automatic review-detector isn't easy to write (even saving
everything posted by a Leeper doesn't work when they *dare* to post anything
other than a review :-) :-) :-)!
If people agreed to mark reviews in some special way (eg. with a
"Keywords: review" line), it would at least be feasible, although I can't
imagine people ever doing so.
3)	when we have 14 Mbytes of 'Hienlien is Great/Crap/Misspelt', how to
glean a review?  Perhaps one should enquire of net.ai?
4)	Interactive use of a 'book information' expert system is one thing;
netwide access to an annotated bibliographic db is another.  I am unconvinced
that it can be "automagicated", although there's no reason why a user of the
former couldn't post/mail its output.
Would this be useful in any way?  possibly.
		- Russell
-- 
		... mcvax!ukc!warwick!req  (req@warwick.UUCP)
"If no small boy smeared with honey can be found, it may be necessary to take
an ordinary small boy and smear him, which should be a pleasure."