An Update on the Network and 1/1

1/1 12:3, in honor of Ben Johnston's eightieth birthday, was sent, along with this letter, to everyone who was an active member as of the publication of 1/1 12:1 in 2005. The purpose of this letter is to update you on the current state of the network. A year and one half after I first announced that I was retiring as editor of 1/1, it begins to appear that there is a reasonable possibility of 1/1, and hence the network, going forward. Initially, Paul Reiners volunteered to update the JIN web site (and is continuing to do so) and Anthony Kozar volunteered to do layout/production of 1/1 (he is responsible for most of the work on 1/1 12:3). What was lacking, however, was anyone who was willing and able to copyedit 1/1. I copyedited the Ben@80 issue, which John Schneider guest edited (solicited the articles, wrote the editorial, made decisions about cutting, and so on). This persuaded me (if I had any doubts) that copyediting 1/1 was among the jobs that I did not wish to continue performing. Just in the past month, however, two volunteers, Jacob Barton and Ryan Janus, have expressed an interest in copyediting (they may both do some web development work as well). This being so, I can see the possibility of producing future issues of 1/1 in which I act as an executive editor, editorial coordinator, and fact checker, while others do the bulk of the editing and production work.

I don't think we're quite ready to begin accepting new memberships or renewals as yet—first we need to try producing an issue using this team approach and see how it goes—but I am ready to accept submissions for 1/1 12:4. So if you've had an article idea in your mind that you thought would have been great for 1/1 if only it were still being published, now is the time to come forward. Over the long term, I'm not sure whether the subscription/membership model is still appropriate for the network, as it commits us to the publication of four issues, which typically takes over two years. We shall see.

None of the volunteers named above have made a long-term commitment to working on 1/1, so it would be highly desirable to have a larger pool of volunteers available so that 1/1 can continue in the event that one or more of these gentlemen should find it necessary to withdraw. I have received a few emails to the effect of "I'd really like to help if only I lived in the Bay Area"; rest assured that Bay Area residence is neither a requirement nor even particularly an asset for would-be volunteers; if you have an email account and the necessary skills (or the willingness to acquire them), you can help with the production of 1/1.

To stay informed about further developments concerning the network and 1/1, please keep us informed of any address and email address changes, and check the JIN website periodically.

Sincerely,

David B. Doty

A Further Update: 2/22/2008

Since this letter was mailed in December 2007, three additional volunteers have joined the group working on JIN projects: Duane Pitre, Marc Jensen, and Paul Wakefield, bringing the total number of volunteers to seven. As this five more than were available to work on 1/1 12:3, and seven more than were involved over most of the history of 1/1, it seems quite likely that we will be able to produce subsequent issues of 1/1 if suitable articles can be obtained. We have opened a private Google Group to coordinate volunteer efforts. Anyone else interested in participating should contact me for admission