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V14 2011 INDEX E-SYLUM ARCHIVE

The E-Sylum: Volume 14, Number 46, November 6, 2011, Article 9

Michael E. Marotta submitted these thoughts on online access to the American Numismatic Association's Numismatist magazine. I had commented on the ANA's recent press release about the new Smartphone app providing access to current and back issues. I'd asked, How far back are the "back issues"? If they're back to 1888 that would be REAL news for bibliophiles and researchers, but I'll bet they only go back 10 years or so.. -Editor

You asked if the online archives of The Numismatist go back to 1888. Of course not! They extend only to January 2009. The question came up because the ANA now makes the magazine available (not actually readable) on Android phones. Yes, Kindle and iPad are powerful and popular. I am sure that many people are happy reading The Numismatist while driving.

Earlier this year Whitman's Dennis Tucker quoted me in print on my not reading the magazine at all this year. Work was hard to find in southeast Michigan, so I saved a few dollars on my ANA membership by foregoing the print edition of the magazine. Although I wrote the "Internet Connections" column from 2005-2010, the truth is that I found the presentation difficult at best on either my PC or my Mac, and I just stopped trying. Pages are slow to load and difficult to view. Browsing is painful. Searches just grind and grind. Again, this clearly works for some people, but the print edition serves everyone.

I appreciate the power in text online. As an academic researcher, I swear before Thoth, Mercury, and the Muses that JSTOR and Gale Cengage are blessings from on high. But they are fast, slick, effective, powerful, and complete.

I challenge anyone reading The E-Sylum to goto the ANA website, enter "bowers" in the Search box and get a response. Try "dollar." Earlier this year, I wrote to the Executive Director, pointing out the problem. I got no reply. Of course, as it turned out, he was busy with other matters.

That was not my first attempt. While I confess to being something of a cyberphobe, I maintain that it is in the best tradition of computer hacking. I want things to work well for everyone. I have worked as a technical writer for information systems for financial and manufacturing applications. I served as the webmaster of the Michigan State Numismatic Society. Like Tron, I fight for the users. ANA members and the general numismatic public need someone who can beat the Master Control Program and release the data. But the ANA Board and management does not even perceive the problem.

Separately, ANA Communication Coordinator Jake Sherlock confirmed that "The back issues available through the App go back to January 2009." -Editor