Thanks to BIG Bill (A *TREMENDOUS!* thanks) the Fellow Ferret Geeks reference list is about to become operational. It would have been by now, but I was hampered by a thumb injury AND having to write two paper outlines in a week AND having to get a paper together so I can present it at the Plains Conference in South Dakota at the end of October AND having to get a carload of references together for a paper I will be presenting at the SAA meeting in Philadelphia next April. In other words, I have been slightly busy, so even though BIG has set me up, I *STILL* haven't had time to plug everyone in. But I will by this weekend. Really. As some of you can remember, the Fellow Ferret Geeks is a cooperative group of people who will pool their vast knowledge of ferret related references to gether to form a single bibliographic list, updated regularly, so people with specific needs can browse the references to find things they can use. Major headings will be veterinary medicine, natural history, nutrition, pet care, animal bites, etc. Since I have literally thousands of these references already in hand, I've decided to turn it into a central ferret archive (That's what it is being used for anyway). People can ask me for a specific reference and I will either fax it or scan it as a jpg. I will also list specific needs from time to time, and people can help find them and provide me with copies for the archive. Of specific need will be video and newspaper clips, newsletters, and strange items of ferret interest. Included with the references will be annotations of the articles. For example, I might find a reference which might be useful in proving ferrets are not as dangerous as dogs, so I write a short 2 or 3 sentence description of the paper's value. Anyone else can read the same paper, and do the same thing. When the bibliography is put together, the annotations go with the reference, so when others are looking for good sources, they can use the annotations to pick and choose the valuable ones. We can also review specific papers and books, which are like annotations but much longer and are more in depth. Abstracts, when available, will be included within the reference. Finally, discussion of various references will be encouraged. See why I call it the Fellow Ferret Geeks? Unlike the FML, Fellow Ferret Geeks is not a general purpose ferret mailing list. I doubt if a mailing will occur more than every few days at best. It is primarily designed to fill in the hole regarding specific information, especially information to increase awareness of ferret issues, as well as to help support people struggling in their fight against anti-ferret forces. Finally, as stated, this is a cooperative. I provide help to meet other people's needs, and they, in turn, help to provide mine. Contributions to the central archive will *NOT* be mandatory, but some kind of helpful cooperation will be expected from time to time. Some people will no doubt send in newspaper clipings, others might send in video-taped newsclips. Some might copy something from a journal or book when requested. And others might help put together a webpage, or help format and classify references. In other words, the only real requirement of membership will be a willingness to help out, when needed, in the same degree you expect to be helped, when needed. As my dad used to say, "Each ant only moves a grain of sand, but together they can build a mountain." How would it work? Someone might need a paper on the transmission of rabies in ferrets. They could check the bibliography, look at the abstracts and annotations, and pick a couple of good papers. They could ask the membership what they think are good references on the subject. If the person cannot get those references locally, they could ask if they could get them from the archive (They would know I have it because the reference would say so). I would scan them in as jpgs/word document and email them, OR fax them. If I don't have the article, we (the membership) can all work together to find a copy, and then provide it for the person in need. A photocopy of the paper can be snail-mailed to the central archives so future requests can be met without substantial wait. Because of copyright regulations, I have to consider myself a "Central Archive" so I can provide myself with legal protection against copyright infrigment. So, I will NOT be able to copy entire books nor provide more than a few papers at a time. Members will still be expected to use their own library resources for locally available materials. The strength of the list will be in the knowledge base created by the catagorized references, as well in the availability of papers at the central archive. It will not be a place for someone to download thousands of references for their personal collection. It will be a place to find out what is available, what is good, and where you can find it. If unavailable in your area, we can get a copy for you. It is a cooperative; we all work together for a common goal: making life better for ferrets. Members will be allowed to download the compelete reference list, which will be updated quarterly or biannually. The references will be available in three formats: as a "Text-Only" file, in one of several word-formats, and in "Endnote" (which I HIGHLY recommend! Point your browser at "www.niles.com" for a free trial copy, available for both Mac and PC). I recommend people use Endnote, because it is cross-platform compatable and lowly PC users can access the info with their own version of the program. Non-member requests will be honored with specific references (we are here to help the ferrets), but their access to the complete bibliography will be denied and their access to the central archive will be restricted to limited emergency use. Hey, its a cooperative, remember? Already, more than 40 people have emailed me their desire to join. If you want to join, let me know. Just send me an email with "FELLOW FERRET GEEK" in the subject line. Bob C and 18 Mo' Fellow Bob Geeks [Posted in FML issue 2818]