LibriVox Forum

This question has been bouncing around in my head for a little while now. What happens to abandoned projects? They obviously return to the pool of available books, but what happens to the already recorded chapters. Are they just thrown away, or are they re-used in a collaborative version? Or could they be re-used in, for example, a 'duo' recording?

Just wondering,
Dan

wow! the moderators were just talking about this (in our top-secret mod-cave) ...

we generally give people a few months, send them lots of reminders (which we often don't get any response to), then eventually we give them a deadline to contact us... we've just been tossing around whether we should delete their projet thread or not...

but, yes, we put the title back on the Suggestions List ... though, of course, even if someone has already claimed a project, anyone else can still do their own solo or collaborative version...

but I really like your idea of using chapters from abandoned solo projects toward a collaborative project ... though, sometimes we don't even have the files yet.. so that part just depends....

thistlechick wrote:wow! the moderators were just talking about this (in our top-secret mod-cave) ...

Well, they don't call me the Puffin for nothing. Admittedly, it has more to do with my running a 25-second 100 metres than my dastardly antics but that's just a front. Honest.

but I really like your idea of using chapters from abandoned solo projects toward a collaborative project ... though, sometimes we don't even have the files yet.. so that part just depends....

It also occurs to me that, if the project is nearing completion when it is abandoned, it might make sense to re-record some chapters, just so listeners don't get three quarters of the way through a book and suddenly have to adjust to a whole new set of listeners... Even just 1 in 5 might be enough (if not less).

Cheers,
Dan

These are good ideas, Dan! As of yet we've not had an abandoned project where the reader actually submitted any files (afaik). But I'm sure it will happen eventually, in which case recycling the files will be a great plan.

hmm... perhaps we need to try and encourage more people to turn their solo projects into collaborative projects when they seem to disappear... i tend to get all of these great ideas about projects, start them, then get bored with them ... turning them into collaborative projects has worked really well for me =)

thistlechick wrote:hmm... perhaps we need to try and encourage more people to turn their solo projects into collaborative projects when they seem to disappear... i tend to get all of these great ideas about projects, start them, then get bored with them ... turning them into collaborative projects has worked really well for me =)

Yeah, I'm just about to do that with David Copperfield. I've recorded 1 1/2 chapters, and at the rate I'm going, it will be about 2080 before I'm done.

pberinstein wrote:

thistlechick wrote:hmm... perhaps we need to try and encourage more people to turn their solo projects into collaborative projects when they seem to disappear... i tend to get all of these great ideas about projects, start them, then get bored with them ... turning them into collaborative projects has worked really well for me =)

Yeah, I'm just about to do that with David Copperfield. I've recorded 1 1/2 chapters, and at the rate I'm going, it will be about 2080 before I'm done.

What a coincidence. I checked DC out from the library last month and only read about 1 1/2 chapters too. I love Dickens, but DC did not hook me, and it's going back to the library.

-tina

What happens if a collaborative project goes dead? Does the MC always pick up chapters as they are submitted to the BC? I expect most readers keep their chapters until the project is catalogued but that's not guaranteed. I was thinking a couple of weeks ago, while co-ordinating 'The Warden' that if I walked under a bus (cheerful as always!) at least the chapters so far would be on my website which someone might notice after a while but that's not the case with everyone.

ExEmGe wrote:What happens if a collaborative project goes dead? Does the MC always pick up chapters as they are submitted to the BC? I expect most readers keep their chapters until the project is catalogued but that's not guaranteed. I was thinking a couple of weeks ago, while co-ordinating 'The Warden' that if I walked under a bus (cheerful as always!) at least the chapters so far would be on my website which someone might notice after a while but that's not the case with everyone.

We would deal with such a situation as it arose. Fortunately we haven't had any serious incidents befall our BCs. Things go pretty smoothly for the most part, and I think we would just deal with something like that the best we could depending on the situation.

We would probably do the best to have people re-send their chapters that could - in an incidence of losing all the files from the BC. Then we would ask if those that didn't still have their chapters to re-do them. If they didn't want to re-do them (I wouldn't blame them!) we'd open up their chapters to be done by someone else.

Basically this means for a reader, if you can help it don't delete any of your recordings. If you have to delete recordings, wait until the project has been put up on the catalog, and has been there for a week. I say wait a week, because sometimes things happen and get messed up.

If you're cramped for space and have a CD burner, burn your old recordings to CD to save them. Then delete them.

Andy, this is a good question :) I don't think we've had this happen yet, although I have a feeling it is about to happen with one of our books. MCs don't collect chapters as the book is underway. We should probably add a big red sentence to every project's first post for folks to please keep a local copy of their chapter(s) until the book is complete. (as if we needed MORE stuff in that first post hehehe)

Come to think of it, this happened with Grimm, oh so many months ago. I had to get a few stories re-recorded because the BC bailed and I couldn't contact the original readers.

Oh well. Try to stay out from under busses :)

edit: whoops, cross-posted with Kri :)