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1. What is "disktop publishing?"
Well, first, it is not a misspelling of "desktop publishing."
Disktop publishing in its broadest sense, means the authorship and
production for general consumer access of any materials which are
primarily read by computer and viewed on computer monitors. Disktop
publishing - also synonymous with "electronic," "paperless,"
"digital," and "on-disk" publishing - includes fiction and
nonfiction works that are stored and distributed on disk or
available by modem access on "bulletin board systems" ("BBSs").
Examples include newsletters, anthologies, books, and other
materials which can be read by modem or from computer disk.
2. Why is this form of publishing becoming so popular?
We like to think of disktop publishing as a natural progression of
publishing technology. If one looks at the history of publishing,
it can easily be broken down into three specific periods or
"waves." The "First Wave" of publishing was restricted to hand-
copied manuscripts, copied by transcribers and available only to
the rich. The "Second Wave" started in 1455 with Gutenberg's
printing press which made books and other material widely available
to all. The "Third Wave" is the wave of "electronic publishing." We
sincerely believe that, well before then end of the 20th century,
disktop publishing will be the predominant method of getting all
forms of written materials into the hands of readers and consumers.
3. What are the advantages of disktop publishing?
There are several. Let's examine a few:
- cost savings (disk copying costs less than a run of books)
- no waste (you can produce disks as they are needed and not be
stuck with unsold books destined for the pulp factory)
- the ability to produce materials fast (a book takes 6-12 months
to produce; writing the materials is the least time-consuming
aspect)
- a corollary to fast output is fast revision - you can update and
correct materials without having to rewrite and republish the
entire tome
- and, of course, the ability to use varied formats - hypertext
being only one - as the medium.
Graphics can be added electronically and displayed on screen.
Sound can be linked; even speech can be incorporated. "Electronic
multimedia" will come to everyone. The only real argument against
on-disk publishing is that you cannot "curl up by the fire with a
computer monitor." But, with the advent of smaller and smaller
notebook computers - now there are even laptops with built-in CD-
ROM capabilities - even that will argument will fall to the
wayside.
I can see a day when books will be on disk. Everyone will be a
publisher. Whole books and even series of books will be available
for downloading from modem-accessible electronic publishing houses.
You will be billed for downloading. The authors will get royalties
based on electronic sales. You will get updates quickly and easily.
Bookshelves will be replaced by disk cabinets.
4. What are the disadvantages?
The major disadvantages relate to the medium itself. Since disktop
publications require a computer to read them, the problems are due
to the current limitations of computers, themselves. They include:
- Electronic publications are less portable than paper models.
However, with the popularity of laptop computers and the associated
industry attention to these type of machines, one can expect some
major developments. It is not unreasonable to expect that laptops
will continue their trend toward smaller size, better displays, and
longer battery lives. We already have seen the prototypes for the
hand-held computers if the future with the Atari Portfolio and the
Hewlett-Packard HP95-LX. Within the next few years, I expect to see
hand-held computers with backlit VGA (or better) color displays.
When these appear in the marketplace, limitations on portability of
disktop publications will be eliminated.
- Computer illiteracy will be a problem for the next few years. The
segment of the population which is comfortable using a computer,
while growing rapidly, is still a minority. However, all available
surveys show that the number of people who use computers and
families that have computers in their homes is rapidly increasing.
So, while the market for authors and publishers who sell electronic
publications will be relatively small to start, it will grow each
year as more and more potential consumers become computer literate.
- Lack of standards for disktop publications will, perhaps, be the
most difficult of the limitations to overcome. When a reader buys
a paper book, there is little guesswork about how to read the
material. Virtually every book is laid out the same and is read in
the same manner, from to back, chapter by chapter. The same is not
true for disktop publications. With the variety of not only the
hardware platforms (IBM compatibles, Macintosh, Amiga, Atari, etc.)
but also the software available to organize electronic
publications, there is nothing that helps a reader read through a
paperless book. Every publication is different. Some are written
with hypertext software, others with multimedia capabilities; some
are written with Mac hardware and software, others are DOS
compatible. For the foreseeable future, authors and publishers will
have to deal with these segmenting factors. There is some movement
toward resolving the incompatibilities. The coalition of Apple and
IBM may result in a standard hardware/software interface.
Spinnaker's PLUS, which can offer hypertext capabilities that can
be run across both the Macintosh and DOS platforms, is an example
of the software of the future.
- Finally, a major problem that has plagued the disktop publishing
industry is the lack of organization of its proponents. There are
dozens or authors, publishers, and businesses who work and produce
products in this fledgling industry. The DPA was formed to unite
these authors and publishers for mutual support and resource
sharing.
5. What is the "DPA?"
The "DPA" is the "Disktop Publishing Association." The Disktop
Publisher's Association (or "DPA") is an association for parties of
all levels who share interest in the dissemination of information
in electronic ("computer readable") format. Those eligible for
membership include authors, publishers, and consumers of on-disk
publishing.
6. What are the goals of the DPA?
In the late 1980s, the "Association of Shareware Publishers" (ASP)
was formed to add legitimacy to the once disorganized band of
software authors who marketed Shareware. Today, thanks largely to
the efforts of ASP, Shareware software is recognized, even in the
largest corporations, as "legitimate" software. It has grown to a
multimillion dollar market. The "Disktop Publishing Association"
(DPA) seeks to organize a new band of talented, but disorganized,
artists into an effective group.
For years, the publishing industry has been a relatively exclusive
"club" whose membership was limited by a simple paradox. To get a
publisher interested in producing your material, you had to be
"previously published." For those new to writing, this effectively
shut the door to being read except by family and friends.
In this regard, the publishing industry is no different from the
software industry. If you had a huge budget for advertising,
publishing, packaging, and distribution, you could have a software
success. If you had an agent, a file full of clips, and money to
spend on distributing your manuscript, you would likely get a book
published. The irony of the both processes is that the quality of
the product - book or software - was not the ultimate determining
factor. Often, books and software both made it through the process
not based on quality but more on the "clout" behind them.
Just as Shareware has achieved a high degree of acceptability (it
is now being reviewed along side traditionally-marketed software in
trade magazines), we feel that this sort of "disktop publishing" is
destined to achieve the same legitimacy in the publishing industry.
In our view, it will be the wave of the future. We foresee a day
when electronic publishing will become more common that printed
materials. With it, anyone with thoughts to share can be their own
publishing house. Electronic publishing lowers the publishing
threshold. Anyone with a good idea and cast it in to the electronic
waters and see if it attracts popular acceptance.
The goals of the DPA include:
1. To promote, though improved public awareness, the benefits of
electronic publishing. These benefits include availability - often
on a 24 hour a day, on demand basis - of electronic publications,
faster production time, cheaper cost, easier revision and updating,
reduced consumption of natural resources, and - using appropriate
reader software - enhanced presentation and readability.
2. To provide a forum for discussing the unique challenges of
successfully publishing and marketing disk-based publications.
Examples might include matching an author or publisher with the
appropriate medium for a proposed project. Would hypertext be best?
Plain ASCII? Multimedia?
3. A matching service will be organized to place authors - who may
not be interested in complexities of marketing and publishing -
with publishers who may be willing to assist in these commercial
aspects. "Writers write and publishers publish" is an axiom that
applies to electronic publishing as well as traditional formats.
4. To share resources for mass marketing electronic publications.
Examples might include sharing of costs of mailing publications to
user groups, etc. DPA will also assist new authors and publishers
in getting press releases circulated and media coverage. Sharing
mailing lists with other publishers is another possibility open to
members.
Future plans include producing a "sampler disk" which will provide
excerpts and Tables of Contents from member publications. The disk
will then be sent to various computer organizations (computer users
groups, etc.) for their members to read and view. Active
discussions are taking place among the members on several
electronic networks concerning standardizing terminology and
setting up joint publishing services.
7. Am I eligible to join and how much will it cost?
The only requirement for membership shall be an interest in the
advancement of electronic publishing. No fees will be solicited
during the start-up phase.
8. How do I contact the DPA to apply for membership?
Interested parties can contact the DPA electronically on our BBS at
205-854-1660 (1200/2400/9600; 24 hours per day). Once online, you
can fill out a membership application online and be considered for
membership.
Alternatively, you can contact us through electronic mail on
CompuServe (75166,2473), MCI Mail (RALBRIGHT), GEnie (R.Albright)
and request an application form.
Finally, you write to us and request a membership application. Our
U.S. Mail address is:
Disktop Publishing Association
1160 Huffman Road
Birmingham, AL 35215