This is the first in a fairly {ir}regular series of follow-ups to
an original posting I made in late March/early April.  The first
posting outlined tentative proposals for the establishment of a
John Muir Centre in his birthplace of Dunbar, Scotland.  My
suggestion at that time was to incorporate an Internet presence in
any development at this type so that John Muir's conservation
message could be made available on a global basis.  I encouraged
everyone who saw that posting to send me an e-mail message of (at
least) 'I saw the posting' nature to provide concrete evidence of
the potential of this form of communication medium.  I have, with
the exception of a few bounced replies, responded with a message of
thanks to more than 150 people who managed to get their e-mail to
me [although I suspect that some e-mail to me was bounced in
transit B-( - more on that at the end of this message].
 
I would encourage *anyone* who is seeing this concept of an
Internet presence for a John Muir Centre for the first time to add
to my e-mail collection ;-).  Such evidence is a vital aspect of
getting the JMC off the ground.  I have been immensely pleased and
impressed by the quality of the feedback I have received so far.
Some have even followed up the e-mail with a postcard to the
address I gave in the original posting. The e-mail and postcards
will form part of an initial exhibition to show Dunbar residents,
and the local council, the degree of support that John Muir
attracts from the Internet community.  If you'd like the address
to send the postcard then just mention this in your e-mail to me.
 
The purpose in submitting follow-up articles is to repay, in kind,
the help and advice that has so generously been given so far.  In
the course of these articles I hope to document the highs and lows
of attempting to setup an Internet presence for the JMC, in
particular, and progress in general.
 
I am pleased to report that the local steering group of about 30
Dunbar residents have elected a small task force of 7 people to
work closely with 6 members of the John Muir Trust.  The initial
remit of the task force is to coordinate a feasibility study for
such a Centre.  It has also been agreed in principle to establish
a charitable body to be known as 'Dunbar's John Muir Association',
the constitution of which will be put before a public meeting in
Dunbar in the near future.  The purpose of the Association will be
to raise funds and sponsorship for the proposed JMC and,
ultimately, be responsible for the day to day running of it.
Future postings will contain details of these developments.
Needless to say, if anyone on the 'net has experience of, or
advice for, such an enterprise, I would be delighted to hear from
them.  I am, of course, particularly interested in the
incorporation of the Internet into the final proposal.
 
You might like to know that the local paper - the East Lothian
Courier - has picked up on my use of the Internet and has run a
story today with the headline 'World-wide Support for John Muir
Visitor Centre'.  Apart from the usual journalistic license and
the minor inaccuracies that crept in due to the lack of
understanding of what exactly the Internet is, the overall picture
is accurate.
 
Plans for the {near} future include setting up an experimental Web
service on (I hope) a local departmental machine, and establishing
an FTP archive for past articles/postings and information on the
John Muir Trust.  Details of these will be given in subsequent
postings.
 
A note on mail delvery problems: here is the text of a message
circulated locally in mid-April about problems with the Strathclyde
University e-mail address...
 
"Changes were made over the weekend to the JANET name/address
database, the NRS, to the entries for Strathclyde University.
These changes were made by NRS staff without the foreknowledge or
approval of the local NRS administrator. These changes caused
bogus NRS entries for Strathclyde to pollute the mail and address
databases used on JANET. This has caused incoming JANET mail to be
bounced."
 
If you have tried to e-mail me in response to my last posting and
had it bounced back then please try again.  If it still happens
then, if you have a local postmaster, he/she might be able to
help.
 
Many thanks for reading this far.
--
Duncan Smeed                                E-mail: [log in to unmask]
Department of Computer Science                 Tel: (+44) 41 552 4400 x3587
Strathclyde University                         Fax: (+44) 41 552 5330
26 Richmond Street
Glasgow G1 1XH
Scotland, UK
    "Nevermore, however weary, should one faint by the way who gains the
     blessings of one mountain day; whatever his fate, long life, short
     life, stormy or calm, he is rich forever", John Muir