I did mention definitions, but I don't remember bringing up "truth" - just usefu
lness, meaningfulness, and an already accepted status.  I am not even talking ab
out being fair.  Names are useful tools, and I feel (yes, IMHO) that when a name
 means (by convention or definition) one clear thing to people (and I realize it
 will be for some group of people, never for everyone, etc.,etc.,etc., but let's
 say for a group like a single state or country) then the tool is being utilized
 successfully.

IMHO a "museum without a collection" is at least at a terrible disadvantage when
 trying to carry on activities we still seem to recognize as museum activities.
 And someone somewhere must still provide the tangible objects, right?  So these
 "museums without collections" exhibit or publish about material from other peop
le's or group's collections, I would assume.  That means the "musum without coll
ection" curators (if they have them) have limited access to the material before
an exhibition, and surely scholarly efforts must suffer to some extent - OR is t
he entire exhibit assembled somewhere else, like in a traveling show, in which c
ase why even have curators? (Some directors dream of this, I think).  In any eve
nt, it would seem there would be a need for at least one "museum with collection
s" somewhere to support those without, or as I said the "museum without collecti
ons" faces a real challenge in rounding up and researching tangible objects.

I wonder why these institutions don't call themselves interpretive centers, lear
ning centers, cultural halls, science centers, and so on; that just seems to fit
 better to me.

Don't get defensive; I think it's an interesting discussion, and maybe I will le
arn something from this thread that will change my mind about how I see museums.
  I do have an open mind.  Of course, the university is shutting down the comput
er for the weekend, so I will have to catch up on Monday.  Have a nice weekend e
verybody.

TIM CAMPBELL
(using Raelyn's e-mail)
Visiting Researcher
The University Museum
The University of Tokyo