[Sca-cooks] Florilegium (was Le Viandier Spice Question)

[Stefan li Rous]

  Anahita replied to me with:
> >> "Pichon":  there's clearly a typo in the Florilegium...
>
> Stefan, i haven't double checked, but the typo could very well be my
> fault. My computer mouse is malfunctioning, making it harder for me
> to fix errors (and getting a new mouse, cheap as it would be, will
> necessitate upgrading my whole computer set-up, which i cannot afford
> to do at the moment).
Sigh. I'm getting a feeling for that right now. Maybe sometimes 
technology moves too fast. I'm trying to rewrite the Python programs I 
wrote several years ago to process text into decent HTML code (vs. what 
Word creates). Even if I had a complete set of code from just before my 
disk crash one of the packages I used for HTML formatting (HTMLgen) is 
no longer supported and most of the routines I was using to interact 
with the Mac operating system to set the directory and files to work on 
have been declared out of date. The replacements are much, much more 
difficult and complex to use. GUI interfaces such as used by the Mac, 
and to a lessor extent by Windows, were not in use when I last did a 
lot of programming 20 years ago. GUIs make using a computer easier, but 
they complicate the programmers job. I'm having to throw out and 
recreate a lot more than I thought I would have to.
> Given the work you do to put all that useful
> discussion into the Florilegium, there's no way you can double-check
> for content, grammar, and spelling.
Well content I don't double check, other than an effort to put in 
varying or even opposing views. I don't want to set myself up as the 
ultimate authority. I generally leave it the reader to figure out which 
comments and opinions he believes. I will sometimes correct grammar and 
spelling when I have the time.

In this case though, having a possible error pointed out, I was willing 
to go see if I could find it and correct it.
> If anyone is using the Florilegium for info, i fell it is up to the
> user to double check things and verify them.
Definitely. That is one of the reasons I try very hard to get book 
reviews and bibliographies into the Florielgium and info on where to 
look up more material. Part of this is the recent addition of Aoife's 
periodic lists of websites of interest to SCA folks on various topics.
> I love the Florilegium and find it immensely useful for many topics,
> but all SCAdians need to remember that the information represented in
> the topics there are "works in progress" by us experimenters, and
> not, generally speaking, vetted scholarly documents (although there
> are certainly some amazing exceptions).
Yep. Which is why I like to have polished articles when I can get them. 
But firsthand, I created this by... articles and messages are also 
good. I have more than one instance of hands-on work, "experimental 
archeology", proving comments by "books only" academics wrong.
> I use it to give me ideas, stimulate thoughts and questions, give me
> practical information for making or doing things, and get me on track
> for research.
Thank you. Yes, that is one of the purposes. To give folks some ideas 
and a headstart with what others have done already. So we can all 
benefit and not keep stumbling around making the same mistakes again 
and again.
> While most of the time it does not really substitute
> for real research, this comment in no way diminishes the value of the
> Florilegium. Believe me, i missed it terribly when it was "down" and
> cheered quietly when i discovered it was BACK!
Thank you very much for your comments. Those eight days or so were the 
longest it has been down since I started the site. I hope it will be 
awhile before it happens again.
> Words are not enough to thank you for your efforts in this amazing
> project.
Thank you again. It is the thank yous like this and the reminders that 
folks do find it useful, which keeps me doing it. It does keep me from 
doing more cooking or metalwork or whatever though, which is one reason 
I'm working on trying to build a team to make the Florilegium more of a 
group effort. At least the information gathering and the site stuff. 14 
years is a fairly long time to have been doing this. If it wasn't for 
all the wonderful information given out, such as on this mail list 
though, there would be nothing to add to the Florilegium.
> ALL SCAdians owe you a huge debt of gratitude.
Well, perhaps they should write Their Majesties of Ansteorra. :-) :-)

Stefan
--------
THLord Stefan li Rous    Barony of Bryn Gwlad    Kingdom of Ansteorra
    Mark S. Harris           Austin, Texas          
StefanliRous at austin.rr.com
**** See Stefan's Florilegium files at:  http://www.florilegium.org ****