Post- Digital Print - Monoskop

Using FLOSS software for publishing ensures that tools can be collectively
developed and shared, and are guaranteed to remain open and
unrestricted by patents. The Open Source Publishing consortium (initiated
by a few members of the Brussels-based collective Constant) 139 is
a major effort in this direction, supporting an organic and systematic
use of FLOSS software for publishing. POD is of course the most obvious
and natural medium for FLOSS-based publishing. Having open
tools which are collectively developed and shared, implicitly guarantees
fair access to the means of publishing, thus promoting freedom of
expression.
Clearly, POD has the potential to make available in print enormous
quantities of otherwise unpublished or forgotten information. POD
seems destined to occupy a position very much similar to that of photocopying
in the 1980s and 1990s: a chance to print and distribute
content cheaply, in a format which is physically stable, easy to use, and
pleasant to the senses. Which is still very much what paper is all about.
3.6 independent magazine strategies,
teaming up for success.
Besides newspapers, the most ‘endangered’ printed products are
surely the magazines. They suffer from a general lack of visibility as
well as a lack of sales outlets willing to stock them because of the small
profit margins involved. Independent magazines continue to cater to
various medium-to-large-sized niche markets, but paradoxically they
have become less visible and harder to find, largely as a result of the
increased quantity of printed products all competing for our attention.
This has given rise to various collective promotional or business strategies,
some carefully planned, others more spontaneous.
The biennial ‘Colophon’ magazine symposium 140 in Luxembourg
(one of the largest events of its kind) brings together nearly 700 independent
publishers to discuss current matters and to introduce potential
advertisers to relevant magazines. The symposium, a sort of collective
awareness rite for a very fragmented cultural sector, combines
workshops, exhibitions focusing on a number of representative magazines,
and the publication of a catalogue surveying almost 2,000 titles.
Bringing magazines together can be a powerful promotional gesture.
The Magazine Library in Tokyo 141 is a sort of temporary exhibition
of magazines from around the world, organised for a few days
in a specific venue such as a club or museum. The magazines manage
to draw a large audience by capitalising on their massive collective
presence. Visitors can browse the various publications and possibly
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