Hi folks! Sharing what I posted on Discord just now. Most notably, the github repository should be public now.
Hi everyone! International Archives Week is less than a month away, so I figured I should get things into gear. My health is still variable, so this is a post asking for help! I’ve added some roles for more focused pinging, so please comment with what role(s) you’d like to help with and get notified about.
- HTMLZine- Public repository: GitHub - eladnarra/ia-zine. Needs editing and adding some more CSS. (If some folks are interested in CSS themes, we could have multiple with a switcher.) Also open to suggestions on things to change/add!
- Art&Design- We need a front and back cover! I was thinking a collage-style one with cut out letters for the title? Size for each is 5 by 8 (portrait orientation). Also open to other art ideas, like images for social media.
- PDFZine- This I’ve worked the least on. I was thinking it’d copy the HTML version, perhaps using InDesign’s merge data option to make it faster… Anyone have thoughts or experience with this?
- Research- The majority of this will happen during the fundraising, but we also need to finalize what info we’re researching about each item, guidelines (SFW, must be viewable, etc.), and make the tracking spreadsheet.
- Fundraising- This is a big one that I need help with. After determining that GoFundMe was the best option I realized that requires putting my real name out there, which I’ll be honest I’m not comfy with. (I’m applying to disability, and I’m worried they’ll think that doing this sort of thing means I can work. Which, lol. Clearly the delays and slowness indicate otherwise.) Is there anyone who would be comfortable making the campaign? (With help, obviously!) You’ll never touch the money, so no worries there.
I think that covers everything? Let me know if it looks like I’m missing anything. With time and energy constraints, I’ve decided a website is one too many things. Maybe eventually, or if we do it again!
Obviously the roles don’t apply to Discourse, but let me know if there’s a particular thing you want to help with, and I can try to bridge the gap between here and Discord!
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Figured I’d update on the fundraising front:
I’m kind of stumped now that I’ve realized GoFundMe isn’t viable due to it requiring my full name. As I mentioned that leaves 2 main options: someone else sets up the GoFundMe, or we have folks donate directly and send a screenshot.
The second option is better in one way (money goes directly to Internet Archive) and bad in another (taking a screenshot and redacting it adds friction and is less accessible).
Anyone have any thoughts about how to go about this? I’m considering a form folks can upload. Trying out some things, I’ve found:
- Google forms is free but requires people to log in to upload files.
- Zoho forms is pretty accessible but would be paid.
- Tally forms is free but not very accessible.
- An HTML form coded by us with a backend (like those listed in the resources page) could be the most accessible, but would be paid and also require hosting and maybe a domain name.
No easy choices… Anyone have any thoughts?
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I think ko-fi doesn’t require you to make your legal name public? I don’t know if ko-fi can be used just for fundraising, but I don’t see why not.
As far as I can tell Kofi only goes to individuals! But I think we’re gonna go with direct donations to IA and have folks fill out a form. Hopefully that’s not too much friction!
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It’s live! Please feel free to share on social media. And if you’d like to help out, there’s still plenty of research and making the zines afterwards, just let me know!
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Update
The fundraiser ended Sunday night, and I’m excited to announce that we received 22 donations totaling $514.79! 
If you still want to contribute, you can! We have items to research and a zine to make (with HTML and PDF versions) - and I’m open to additional art as well as other ideas to include alongside the research items.
A lot of the collaboration is happening on the discord, but art and research are two ways to contribute without joining it!
Art
Art is 8in by 5in for a full page, or 5in by 4in for a half page.
So far we have 2 pieces (a cat illustration and a poster). Let me know if you have any specific ideas, or if you want to make art but need help brainstorming~ We’re looking for stuff that is either made from (public domain) stuff on the Internet Archive (like collages), or pieces that somehow relate to the IA.
Research
We’re finding one cool thing in the Internet Archive per donation (so 22 total). Donors could suggest the topic, and most of them did! So now it’s time to find something cool for each topic to showcase what the Internet Archive has to offer.
To help with research:
- Go to the research spreadsheet and pick 1 or 2 topics you want to research.
- Put your name (or username) in the researcher name column to claim a donation/topic.
- Search the Internet Archive for one (1) cool thing in that topic!
- It can be anything: a book, movie, video, zine, game, music, website, interactive CD, etc.
- Just make sure the item is accessible for everyone (to view, download, or checkout). For example, some books are only available to folks with print disabilities.
- Fill out the spreadsheet with the basic info (title, etc.).
- Write a 1-2 paragraph description of the item.
- Start with describing what it is.
- The rest is mostly up to you, but examples of things you could talk about: why you chose it, why it’s cool, a personal anecdote related to it, its context (historical and/or within the Internet Archive).
For example, I chose The seals and whales of the British seas for the marine mammals topic. I haven’t written my description yet, but I plan on writing a brief description of what’s in the book (illustrations and scientific info), its place in the Internet Archive (ie, it’s one of many public domain books), and its place in history (as part of shift away from thinking about whales as monsters to thinking of them as animals worthy of study, appreciation, and protection).
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