31 Jul
2010
31 Jul
'10
12:04 p.m.
----- Original Message -----
From: "William Donzelli" <wdonzelli at gmail.com>
To: "General Discussion: On-Topic and Off-Topic Posts"
<cctalk at classiccmp.org>
Sent: Saturday, July 31, 2010 2:05 PM
Subject: Re: drifting from retrobrite - can I make it a museum discussion
If you are located in the same city as say 5 hugely important defunct
computer manufacturers then I can see it being hard to pick on any specific
one to specialize on. With shipping costs I would think you are stuck with
preserving what is somewhat local unless you take donations of money and
peoples time in uncrating stuff. Museums should have connections with other
museums so something somebody wants to donate (but is not your specialty)
can find the correct home and not the landfill.
Museums are not that much different then single collectors. We all have the
problem of money, space, what to collect, what to pass on, what we are
comfortable fixing, and what we should leave as is.
The local Butler Institute of American art has a nice Winslow Homer "Snap
the whip" painting because somebody donated it, not because the museum
started with the intent to feature that particular artist. So I can see a
computer museum changing focus a little because they got lucky enough to get
offered something worth preserving.
Museums should
specialize more, maybe specific companies or year
range.Then
they can build up a collection with all the models and rarities without
having to pass on anything special.
This is a key concept. Any startup museum, small or large, should have
some sort of focus. From the focus should be a written collections
criteria - a set of self-imposed (and self-enforced) rules that the
group sticks to when considering what is to be accepted as a donation.
Almost every small museum or serious collector I have been involved
with has failed at the whole collections criteria idea, myself
included. Most figure out the hard way - or in some cases, they very
hard way, with good stuff being lost or damaged forever. I am
currently helping a friend out in this situation, and frankly, it is
pretty painful (and disgusting!).
--
Will