Communication of conservation information

I'd like to add my two cents' worth on the subject of all the people
who ask "embarrassingly"  elementary questions and the reply that
this kind of list is meant to help people along, not intimidate them
into silence.  There are many people working in various aspects of
preservation who have been pressed into service without benefit of
adequate training, or who, as Craig Deller pointed out in his
response, may be the only person covering a large area and regularly
encounter a variety of unusual problems with nowhere to turn for
help.  With so many institutions downsizing and cheaping out on
staff, more and more people are being used as "two-fers" and
muddling through as best they can with the poor tools at hand.  They
deserve respect, not scorn.  Truly, there are no stupid questions
when people are trying to educate themselves for their work any way
they can.  Not everyone is privileged to be a certified conservator,
no matter how much we might all wish to be.  Let's hear it for the
generous souls who don't mind helping along the beginners.  Thank
you, Craig Deller, for your excellent comments.  Luckily my
experience in library preservation has led me to many kind people
like you, and they have pulled me through.

Jeanne Eichelberger
Binghamton, NY

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                  Conservation DistList Instance 11:92
                  Distributed: Thursday, May 14, 1998
                       Message Id: cdl-11-92-012
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