7 May
1998
7 May
'98
6:22 a.m.
On Thu, 7 May 1998, John Foust wrote:
OK, help me brainstorm arguments to persuade companies
to release
obsolete information. Certainly pointy-haired managers (does the
cartoon "Dilbert" cross the pond?) will opt for the simple safe
solution of "don't let anything out of the office, or out of our
control". And there's the question of money to be made. As soon
as someone seems interested in old technology, they'll believe
there's still some money to be made. Then there's the question
of the cost and trouble of drafting or approving any legal document
to make the transaction official. Why spend money on giving away
products?
Appeal to their ego.
Dear Pointy Haired Manager:
My name is Joe Hacker, and I'm the curator of the Pointy Haired Products
museum, an organization dedicated to the preservation of Pointy Haired
history. Our current project is the preservation of your products PH123A
and PH171, and we'd like your help. We seek any documents, schematics,
prototypes, or marketing literature that you feel may have historical
significance related to these products. Even photocopies would assist our
preservation effort, and we will gladly pay for any reasonable costs
associated with transporting these items to our museum.
Yours Truely,
Joe
If that doesn't work, maybe we could set up an organization for legacy
support (something like the obsolete computer helpline). Most orgs would
be happy to offload support for legacy products to a third-party org
comprised of eager volunteers.
-- Doug