Second Half - Information

from Getting Started In Emergency Preparedness by Someone You Know

Welcome,
This is the second half of the blog about transportation. You will find videos/podcasts, instructions, and other information about the subject for this week.

Videos/Podcasts:

Loading Microfilm
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IubMlnzVKSE

Loading Microfiche
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l1A2K4osqM4

Microfiche Copier 101
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I2AWcFIqlaE

Coin Operated Microfiche Copier
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZZF81x0pOyQ

Instructions:

Long-Term Storage of Books
I have two copies of certain books. One copy is kept out and is used as needed. The other copy is placed into long term storage.

To store these books, I place them in a mylar bag with an oxygen absorber and some moisture absorber. After I seal the bag, I write the title and author of the book on the seal. I then place two or three other sealed books in another bag with an oxygen absorber and more moisture absorber. This bag is sealed and labeled with titles and authors. I take two to three of these bundles then place the bundles in a heavy-duty trash bag. The trash bag is taped shut and stacked in a metal (preferred method) or wooden (alternative method) box.

Other Information:

Obtaining Information
My favorite place to get information is the internet.The second place is the local library. The library has magazines, books, and videos on a variety of subjects. Just go to the card catalog, probably a computer now a days, and enter your search query. If that doesn't work, there is a librarian to assist you.

Most local libraries are a member of a inter-library loan program. Under the inter-library loan program, the local library is able to borrow a book from another library. The library will be able to get you a copy of a book; they don't have for free or a small fee.

I have used my local library and the inter-library program to read many books that I normally couldn't afford. Once, I find a book that I think I want to own; I check local and national booksellers for used copies. We also have a local library sale every year. I am able to buy books for about 1/10 to 1/100 their original price. One year I was able to buy a set of Encyclopedia Britannica for $20.

Be careful, I have accidentally bought five copies, over the years, of Square Foot Gardening by Mel Bartholomew. I keep a list, now. For the ambitious, the librarians will be able to help you set up a card catalog for your book collection.

The Dan Forrester Project
In the book Lucifer's Hammer by Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle, the character Dan Forrester attempts to save information that might be useful to a society recovering from a catastrophic event.

In the pouring rain, he loads books, double sealed in zip-lock bags, into an old steel tank. After hooking up with other survivors of the asteroid strike, they are able to recover the contents of the tank.

This is a good idea; however, zip-lock bags will leak. Loading the tank during a pouring rain was also a poor idea.

So why did I tell you about a very minor part in a great survival/science fiction book? Because, I would like you to join the "Dan Forrester Project."

The idea is to save books that can be used by you to teach or by others to learn your profession/expertise. If you would like to add more books to the project, please do.

Now, don't go out and buy two new copies of every book you own, that is a waste of money. Just the ones that you would use to teach someone, from the beginning, your area of expertise.