I wrote in 90% to 1%: The Reluctant Blogger, Part 2 that I'm on a few email lists. The list I've been on the longest is for the users of a certain software product, a word processor known as Nota Bene. Calling Nota Bene a word processor doesn't do it justice and that's what most people think of when they see me use it (although NextStage's staff constantly remind me that the symbols appearing in my papers aren't on their keyboards). By it's own admission, Nota Bene is "Software for Academic Research & Writing". I've been using Nota Bene since 1984, when it was called XyWrite (and that's another story).
This post isn't about Nota Bene per se, it's about the community which has built itself up around Nota Bene and how they are another demonstration of True Power of the Internet, The Village, and Being Careful What You Wish For.
- A long time contributor to Nota Bene mailing list, Dorothy Day, developed a terminal illness. She continued contributing to the list until the end. What follows is an excerpt from a file which is now part of every Nota Bene product release:
"Dorothy Day led an extraordinarily rich and varied life combining a generosity of spirit, an abiding patience, good humor, and a deep concern for humanistic values with a high level of technical expertise and uncompromising standards in every task she undertook.
"She is particularly remembered in the Nota Bene community for her generosity in sharing her considerable technical expertise, and for the unique blend of kindness and wisdom that she brought to e-mail discussions on everything from the use of Nota Bene to world affairs.
"After her death, a group of Nota Bene users felt that some lasting memorial should be made. The suggestion was made that a font should be named in her honor and included in future releases of Scholar’s Workstation and Lingua Workstation. With the full cost paid by contributions from Nota Bene users, a font was licensed and named NB DayLight in Dorothy’s honor." - This holiday season a regular contributor to this list from South Africa sent pictures of his family gathering with some friends. The responses so far have been warming reading. They've come from Barcelona, Miami (FL), outside London (GB) and now from New Hampshire on my way to Nova Scotia.
If you're reading this, Welcome. There is always room for more people in The Village.
And Happy Holidays, All.
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Tracked on: January 22, 2007 11:00 AM | Permalink to Trackback