If I had a stack of those gay and lesbian books on hand I can imagine that I might send them off to Bookshare and I might be out the postage and the cost of the books if I had bought them, but I would also be out many hours of volunteer labor to get them into the collection. I am not particularly interested in children's picture books, so I have not downloaded any, but I would think that outsourcers could handle them. I think that Pavi, in fact, said that the more difficult books have priority for being outsourced. The main thing I have noticed, though, is that the proportion of books added to the collection by means other than volunteers is now considerably greater than the proportion added by volunteers and that proportion is growing. Also, a good many books already in the collection by means of volunteers are being replaced by other means. Furthermore, the proportion that are being added by volunteers could , in most cases, be done faster and just as easily or more easily, by those other means. No one has mentioned it. In fact, the Bookshare staff is proceeding away with more and more innovations for volunteers. What I was really wondering is whether volunteering is becoming obsolete and nobody has noticed it. "Can a nation be free if it oppresses other nations? It cannot." Vladimir Lenin The Militant: http://www.themilitant.com Pathfinder Press: http://www.pathfinderpress.com Granma International: http://granma.cu/ingles/index.html _ table with 2 columns and 6 rows Subj: [bksvol-discuss] Re: Are volunteers really that important anymore? Date: 8/27/2009 4:25:38 AM Eastern Daylight Time From: rwiley@xxxxxxxxxxxxx Reply-to: bksvol-discuss@xxxxxxxxxxxxx To: bksvol-discuss@xxxxxxxxxxxxx Sent from the Internet (Details) table end Roger, this is an excellent summary of some of the things I have also been thinking. When I first started with bookshare a couple of years ago, there were tons of books whose rating was fair, and in most cases that designation was kind. But, the books were available, and for a group starving for reading material, they were great to have. However, our tastes--and our tolerances--have improved. Where once we would accept day-old bread because we were starving, we now want freshly baked goods. (Wow, I must be hungry). So, I think your comments about the changing role of the volunteer are right on target. There will always be a need for volunteers to do the specialty books (such as children's books with pictures), and books of special interest. I can't imagine NLS having a whole category of gay and lesbian books, nor can I imagine the department of education wanting their money going toward that end. (I'm not being critical, just can't imagine it happening.) But, we volunteers can make it happen. We can also put books in the collection from those publishers who won't cooperate with us (after all, we have the law on our side). In short, I see the role of the volunteer changing, but not going away any time soon. There's an old Chinese proverb that says "may you live in interesting times." I've always wondered whether that was a curse, challenge or a blessing. Whatever it is, we live in very interesting times with bookshare. Bob “We know the future will outlast all of us, but I believe that all of us will live on in the future we make,” Senator Edward M. Kennedy block quote ----- Original Message ----- From: Rogerbailey81@xxxxxxx To: bksvol-discuss@xxxxxxxxxxxxx Sent: Wednesday, August 26, 2009 9:22 PM Subject: [bksvol-discuss] Are volunteers really that important anymore? I am not taking a position one way or another. I just thought I would express some thoughts and questions that have been running through my mind. I have been involved with Bookshare for just a little over a year now and have seen some considerable changes. I have also surmised changes that came about before I came along. As I understand it the name Bookshare was literal in the beginning. That is, people posted the books they had scanned for themselves and actually shared them with others who were posting books they had scanned for themselves. That would have meant that the only source of books Bookshare had for the most part was from the volunteers. Since then, though, publishers have come to contribute large numbers of books. Bookshare is acquiring books from donations or from buying them and scanning them in house or outsourcing them. It actually appears that the number of books added to the collection by means other than volunteers is considerably greater than those added by the volunteers. I have noticed other things being done that volunteers do that may be being done more prolifically by other means than by volunteers. On more than one occasion now I have made a quality report for a book that contained an error or errors. To my surprise the whole entire book was promptly replaced by an outsourcer. That makes me wonder why we should bother with scanning a BSO. Volunteers are more and more frequently finding that the books they intend to scan are being added by outsourcers before the volunteer get a chance to add it. Yes, that means that the volunteer can work on something else, but it still remains that work that would have been done by a volunteer is being done otherwise. We were asked for some suggestions about gaps in the collection and I made a suggestion. As I scan the new books lists I see that it appears, to my gratification, that my suggestions are being acted on. I am pleased, but I cannot help noticing that it is being done without volunteers. If time is money I wonder if it might be more efficient to donate money to Bookshare to buy books and pay outsourcers rather than donate our time. If we want certain books in the collection I wonder if it might be faster and more efficient to just donate the books rather than put so much of our own labor into them. As things change devices to accomplish our goals become obsolete when they are replaced by better devices and certain jobs become obsolete when better and mor efficient ways are found to do things. I wonder if Bookshare v olunteering is a job that is becoming obsolete. Since we have not even heard hints from Bookshare that new volunteers are no longer welcome or that volunteers can give up on certain jobs I wonder if Bookshare volunteering is becoming obsolete and the folks at Bookshare do not even realize it yet. It does seem that the volunteers are becoming less important to Bookshare and that Bookshare could probably now do quite well without volunteers while still adding books at a rapid rate. I am not saying that is good or bad. I am not saying that I want it to be like that or that I don't want it to be like that. I am just wondering and thinking. What do you guys think about what I have said? "Can a nation be free if it oppresses other nations? It cannot." Vladimir Lenin The Militant: http://www.themilitant.com Pathfinder Press: http://www.pathfinderpress.com Granma International: http://granma.cu/ingles/index.html _ block quote end