I am a manufacturer of wood organ pipes, including numerous custom
sets for collectors of mechanical musical instruments.  We are in the
process of expanding our business to offer better customer service.

A couple months ago I was surfing the Internet and did a search for
wood organ pipes which turned up the MMD.  If you have a passion for
wood organ pipes (and frankly, who doesn't?), what else would you use
the Internet for?  I have browsed through the MMD Archives and put it
on my favorites list so I can check the new stuff every few days.

I am also writing about wood pipe production, and compiling my
documentation of pipe scales for mechanical musical instruments.
I will be publishing this on a web site with some of the first
installments coming soon.  The "Wood Pipe Production" book will have
sections on scaling, voicing, manufacturing, and re-manufacturing wood
organ pipes.  The manufacturing section will demonstrate techniques for
small shops.  I would appreciate your questions and comments about what
you would like to know.

Bob Taylor wrote this a few days ago:

> The ease of using the Internet and its tremendous capability to allow
> us to exchange information may be both a curse and a blessing.  Avid
> collectors and researchers have kept this hobby thriving here on the
> MMD, but if someone pulls the plug, it is all lost.  Back up your
> data.  Publish the important stuff in hard copy!

In deciding to publish my work on the web, I expect that it is less
likely to be lost, and more likely to be used and appreciated.  Parts
of it may go into the MMD Archives.  Some of it may be printed in the
appropriate journals.  While I will retain the copyright, once it's
on the web, I have no doubt that it will migrate to the hard drives of
millions (would you believe a dozen?) of interested readers.

I think that for technical information, of interest to a limited
but global segment of the population, paperless publication is the
way to go.  Hard copy of things like the MMD Archives can probably be
restricted an occasional CD-ROM.

In reading the policy of the MMD, as well as other Internet sites, it
is my understanding that we are free to copy web pages for our own use,
but not for re-publication in any form without permission.  When I
start writing about voicing wood pipes, I will want to refer to Johan
Liljencrants' article on Ising intonation numbers.  I can link to it,
or with both his and the MMD's permission, I can republish it.

Without the web, Mr. Ising's research would have remained obscure and
unknown, waiting to be re-discovered by someone else.  Rather than
putting everything in hard copy to preserve it, I am looking forward
to seeing all the worthwhile hard copy put on the web to preserve it.

John M. Nolte

 [ Welcome aboard MMD, John.  Your view of MMD and Internet publishing
 [ is generally correct.  The copyright of the work remains with the
 [ author, and MMD holds compilation copyright on the article in Digest
 [ form.  We ask that permission to republish be requested of both the
 [ author and MMD so that we have a record of the request.  I'm looking
 [ forward to our mutual cooperation toward publishing your work!  ;)
 [ -- Robbie