Recent discussions on this list and on Exlibris (librarians) have touched
on this issue.
 
I think that it is a fair assertion that the majority of those
subscribing to either list are employed by nfp institutions.
 
On Exlibris, it is considered fair, even laudable, that some book dealers
have made their catalogs available by e-mail.  They make a simple
announcement of the availability of a new catalog; if anyone is
collecting in that area they may contact the book dealer privately.
 
It simplifies life for librarians and does not clutter up the mail with
un-read or un-wanted catalogs (saves a few trees on the way.)
 
For the first few months I was on the net, I was careful not to advertise
the fact that I own a conservation lab.  As I became more familiar with
signatures and learned to read return addresses, it occured to me that by
not identifying myself people were assuming I was associated with Reed
College (it's a guest scholar account), and that I was tacitly accepting
second-class citizenship with respect to the net.
 
As to personal gain, let me tell you something about the administrative
side of nfp's.  They are the slowest people to pay bills of anyone I know.
I have been awaiting payment from a federal organization for nearly 2 1/2
months now, and a mid-west university is 4 1/2 months late in paying
their bill.  Yesterday (third call since July) they told me that I would
be receiving payment within 3-5 days; maybe 10. !%@#)*
 
And those are just the current crop.
 
If I choose to post a notice about a workshop I plan to conduct, or a
text I've just published (I'm editing 4, including two translations which
I have paid for and hope to break even on), or a conservation videotape
I've produced (about 40, so far; they break even - the institutional
market is thin), I'll just consider that interest on the institutional debt.
 
Smilin' Jack
Thompson Conservation Lab
Portland, OR
 
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