From: rsc@altair.csustan.edu (Steve Cunningham)
Subject: Re: We may yank the graphics references mail server from decwrl
Summary: We'd love to have a volunteer!
Keywords: online bibliography, volunteer, SIGGRAPH
Organization: California State University, Stanislaus
Date: Tue, 14 Apr 92 23:31:12 GMT

Pardon me for repeating the entire text of Eugene Miya's note, but it's all
germane to this followup:

> As you may recall, the Bay Area ACM/SIGGRAPH set up a widely used graphics
> references server on the host decwrl.dec.com.  DEC has been kind enough
> to provide the disk space and cycles.
> 
> Unfortunately, support for continuing maintenance of the server
> has not been forthcoming from SIGGRAPH.
> The server continues to fall behind the times.  Many people are willing
> to use the server, but unfortunately few are willing and able to
> contribute.  This is a major effort, and my efforts have to come to a close.
> I would rather NOT have the daemon issuing dated references.  The matter
> will fall into the hands of ACM/SIGGRAPH during the next month, and failing
> that after one more month, I will tell DEC to kill the server daemon.
> 
> This note is being issued to forewarn you of the eminent demise of the server.
> 
> 1) You can apply pressure on BA ACM/SIGGRAPH (Bruce McDiffit)
> and ACM/SIGGRAPH (Jim Thomas) [I do not have time to continue working
> on this.].  Do not bug DEC.  Do not bother ACM.
> 
> 2) This will be your last chance to anonymous FTP the text from
> gatekeeper.dec.com (and if you do this, you should do this as a SITE,
> not as individuals, if you did the latter, can you imagine hundreds of
> worried readers on a campus bring over copies of the same multi-MB files?
> Coordinate.).  The files can easily be moved to the SIGGRAPH machine:
> siggraph.org, but that is not the issue.  The issue is the antiquation
> of the files.  I'd rather kill it now than issue obsolete data years
> from now.  As a warning, this is a non-trivial effort.  Those believing
> you can do this once and be done with it, need not apply.  Long-term
> commitment required.

SIGGRAPH is still interested in this bibliography, and would be glad to
have someone who wants to provide the long-term commitment that Eugene
refers to.  We have ample space and cycles on the siggraph.org system, and
we have a backlog of Canadian National Research Council paper references
that can aid in this work.  I would love to find a volunteer who has access
to a research library and who would take on this labor of love and service
to the graphics community.  Interested volunteers are urged to contact me
for discussion; use my return address above.

But Eugene is absolutely right -- at this point it is better to let the
out-of-date bibliography die than to continue to point people at its
outdated literature instead of giving access to the current information.
He is also right in that we cannot provide resources, such as student
stipends, to make these entries.  But we'd love to talk about what might
be possible for the right volunteer!!!

And finally (and reluctantly) if you are unhappy and want to apply pressure,
you should include me in the complaint list, since I am responsible for all
SIGGRAPH publications (including the online ones).  Constructive criticism
will be responded to; complaints will be noted; flames will be ignored.

-- Steve Cunningham
   SIGGRAPH Director for Publications
Newsgroups: comp.graphics