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Introduction to database

Giorgio Buccellati – June 2023

In this section one will find the plain data base on which the browser edition is based. The data are structured but unformatted.

The structure is that defined in the Grammar.

Since the data are not formatted, they are not meant for easy reading, nor do they have the advantage of hyperlinks. They are only meant for those who wish to use them in other programs. For instance, the text files listed under the indices can be imported into a commercial program like Excel for different types of sorting.

Please note that, in keeping with the concept of offering only primary data bases, the link to the full frame of graphic files is not to the hyperlinked version, but only to the graphic file itself. Thus if you wish to have the full hyperlinked version of a view, you should look under the “v view photos” category (mid right vertical bar), and not under the photographs data base.

An important function of this section addresses the question of the durability of the data. It seems inevitable to assume that the life span of the data as currently structured for the browser edition, and of the electronic media that make them readable, are going to be alarmingly short. While there are, and presumbaly will always be, means to secure data conversion to the alternative electronic media that will replace the current ones, it seems safer to provide a non electronic repository as well. Accordingly, it is planned that the data base contained in this section will also be stored on archival paper, and copies deposited in a few selected archival libraries. The entire browser edition of the structured data is derived from this data base, and will thus remain available in the most concise possible manenr.

The graphic files are all in low resolution. For a high resolution version, please contact the webmaster.

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