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----- Original Message ----- From: "Michael Fitzgerald" <[log in to unmask]> > At 10:53 AM 10/18/2005, Steve Smolian wrote: > >But discographies on-line can be corrected. A Wikopedia type > >structure might work- corrections by peer review, signed, should be > >a good starting place. > Yes, this has been suggested for many years (in 1998 I began a small > mailing list on the subject titled "jazz computer discography project"). > It's easier said than done. The fact is that the database programming > for such a thing is much more involved than for a single-user offline > database. But the data exchange function in the BRIAN application is > a major step in the right direction. Users can and do submit > corrections and additions in XML format to the appropriate > discographers. From what I know of the Wikipedia project, it's just > plain text (with some hyperlinks) not any kind of database (and it > shouldn't be - it's encyclopedia-type text). > 1) For a good example, check the "Abrams files" which can be accessed (searched but not browsed, so far) and/or downloaded via the 78Label section of the 78Online site. These are simple random-access text data files, 160 bytes/8 fields per data record and readable in any text editor or word processor. 2) The problem with on-line correction is that "corrections" can be made that are inaccurate...often intentionally so. To me, it is better to submit corrections in such a way that they can be fact- checked by a knowledgable human befor inclusion! 3) A good...and simple...file format for databases would be the xBASE...which can be imported by virtually all database applications and, as well, are readable as text files if you ignore a short header section. 4) Back in 1989, I first started with digital discography using dBASE III+. I was immediately struck with how quickly data tables could be sorted or indexed compared to the 3x5 cards I was using! Ever try to resort 16,000 3x5 cards on a fifferent "field?!" Steven C. Barr