SCR Back Issue Library Upgrade

[PaulC]

By popular demand, the SCR back issue library has been updated with more detailed link information and issue cover shots. Special thanks goes to Ward Shrake for producing the cover images and inspiring the new layout. BZ, Ward!

[ward shrake]

You're welcome!

[JWLaRue]

Excellent job, guys!

-Jeff

[salmon]

Better than just a list! Most excellent.

[PaulC]

Thanks guys. I like looking at the covers over time. So many memories.

[tom dougherty]

Brings back memories….and geez, I have been writing for the SCR for a long time (as have others!!).

Tom

[PaulC]

Yes, Tom, you have -- and we appreciate it!

[Radioman]

Being a very new member I was looking at some of the back SCR. I have suggestion , how hard would it be to list the table of contents for each. Would let you know what articles are in the issue.

Tom, Radioman

[ward shrake]

That probably depends on what you mean, but I'd imagine the answer ranges from "it would be hard work" to "it would be lots of really-ridiculously-hard work".

Ideally, if a person were to be able to just snap their fingers and have stuff happen with no effort at all, then a searchable index would the most useful thing.

But without (weeks of?) (unpaid!) work on someone's part, an index is probably unlikely to happen. I'd love to be wrong on that, but I figure if it were to be likely to happen, it would have already happened. My guess on it, looking at the sheer amount of pages spread across 100 or so separate back issues, is that these PDF file collections are very useful ... but at their heart or core they are just "scanned in" collections of printed pages ... so every single article's info would have to be typed in, by hand, I'd imagine -- (by persons unknown) -- for something like a searchable index to ever be possible.

I could be wrong, but I can't see any one person doing that much work.

If it ever happens at all, I'd imagine it would end up being a joint effort by multiple parties. But that would still need to be coordinated, by a central authority.

Correct me if I'm wrong, guys, but to me it sounds like the short-term-work-around would be for individual readers to "just" print out the table of contents for each issue. We'd still be talking about finding the contents for each one of 100 or so issues ... and individually making printouts of those 100 separate tables. And then, presumably, doing a bit of labeling over top of each of those issues (to show, quite clearly, which issue is which, etc.) and then making a new PDF file, just for tables of contents.

But take that all with a grain of salt. I'm just a random member; not one of the group's leaders. They may have a different take on the matter.

[JWLaRue]

Ward is correct in his assessment of the amount of work required. We tried to pull together a group of volunteers some number of years ago, but nothing really came of it. While I did create an Access database with a simple-to-use form to enter data, we essentially got next to zero support.

-Jeff

[PaulC]

I do know certain early issues did have indexes of articles for the previous year. They were usually in the December issue at the very back. Author, topics, title, issue, page, etc. Don't recall which ones specifically. I'm pretty sure it was only in the first 10 years of publication.

[tom dougherty]

Yes, that feature disappeared a while back. Having indexed two books, I can tell you it is grunt work.

[southern or]

Does anyone have the full article "The USS Gato: Building the SS-212 in 178" by Ken Hart from the SCR #12?

[PaulC]

SCRs from 2018 and 2019 have been add to the 2010's Back Issue Library. Another decade completed.

[modelnut]

I am missing the December 2019 issue. I don't know how I missed it. Busy and forgetful I guess. Is there any way I could download a copy?

- Leelan