thanx

nik (nik@websciences.org)
Sat, 30 Aug 1997 01:12:45 -0700

Johannes

>>To Nik: I looked at the Blackbook and feel that this must have been a
>>tremendous work to accomplish, and am trying to imagine how helpful it
>>will be,
>>and want to send congratulations.

thanx.

>
>>I only spent a short while looking into its holding, searched under
>>companies
>>and cities (Houston, more or less empty, Los Angeles, 24 entries). Under
>>companies I saw listings of some well known ones, but several I entered into
>>search are not existent yet (Twyla Tharp is there, Bill T. Jones not), among
>>others not there most of us folks here who have companies. mmmmh.mmmmh.

>Some search results puzzled my, e.g. under presenting organizations I found a
>listing of a high school in Houston.
>In any case, this could be an invaluable guide and archive, so keep on,
>and I am
>sure you will be getting feedback and more input over time.
>

these addresses were gathered and sorted algormitically - and so the data
has very strange inconsistancies. i have not gone thru it by hand yet,
hopefully i'll never have to. i got an e-mail that the Tremaine Studio
address i have is about ten years old. lots of wierd stuff, but computers
and algorithms are basically stupid.

my ONLY intent with the data as present would be to demonstrate how nice it
would be to have a database that spread across many dance forms and
provided very practical tools for dancers to find money, students,
companies, etc.

i hope very much that this data will completely be overhauled over the next
few months by people finding themselves and adding themselves to the
database.

this weekend i'm writing the input/update tool which will allow people to
get a password and add themselves to the database. i also have about 2000
e-mail addresses and i'll mail everyone and ask them to please add/update
their info.

also over the next week i'll add a news ultitily so that companies in the
database can post audition info, performance info, post class schedules and
the like and that'll be linked to their entry in the blackbook as well as
having a seperate news interface, a couple weeks after that this will all
be integrated with e-mail alerts so someone can simply ask to be sent an
e-mail based on some criteria, say, anytime someone posts an audition in
Houston.

but, whether a tool like this or any similar tools will mature into
something really useful will depend not on technology, which requires some
technical expertise but is no big deal. whether or not this database
matures depends on the willingness of most dance people to submit and
maintain info on themselves

if everybody contributes a little, submits and maintains their data, then
everyone benefits - the whole is greater than the sum.

this is the bantaba - a Mandinka expression meaning dancing circle. if a
bantaba exists among dancers, if a spirit of community exists, then i think
the blackbook or something like it could be potential practically useful
.... if not, then not

either way it should be interesting.

saludos,

nik

~ voices

http://www.yes.ucla.edu/voices/

UCLA Youth Enhancement Service's political and media
databases/index.

~ the dnc project - dance, networks, computing

http://www.websciences.org/dnc/

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