Monday 8 December 2014

Patrick O'Sullivan, ed., The Irish World Wide - 4000 downloads


At the beginning of this year, 2014, I made available the texts of...

The Irish World Wide, History, Heritage, Identity,
6 Volumes,  Edited by Patrick O'Sullivan

on this free MediaFire web storage site...

https://www.mediafire.com/folder/ooj5btdttc9y4/Documents

In fact, working out where to put the texts, and how to display them, was a little 2013 New Year Eve project - before joining the family downstairs to welcome the New Year in...

So, the simple download counter supplied with the free version of MediaFire began counting on December 31 2013.  And since December 31 2013 it has - as of today, December 7 2014 - counted exactly 4000 downloads.

Since that start, on New Year's Eve, nearly a year ago, I have added other pieces of writing to that MediaFire site, as they became available.  So, it is not only The Irish World Wide that has been downloaded.  So far I have put there only my Irish Diaspora Studies works - interpreting that label a little vaguely.  For example, you will find there my song lyric book, Love Death and Whiskey - it does contain much 'Irish Diaspora' material, and it reminds me to get more song lyrics finished.

There is on MediaFire a little cluster of items which first appeared in Irish Studies Review, from 1992 onwards.  There are a number of names perhaps over-represented in the early issues of Irish Studies Review.  The Founding Editors were, in those years, still finding their way - seeing quite where to pitch the journal - and a number of us were supportive, and did what the Editors asked us to do.  For example, the Editors decided to publish a short story of mine, 'The Fiddler's Apprentice' - the text, as published, complete with errors, is on that MediaFire web site.

I am told that the Editors were later to bitterly regret publishing that short story - for, they say, they were thereafter swamped by unsolicited short stories.  What can I say?  Not my fault, not my fault...

That story, 'The Fiddler's Apprentice' was picked up by BBC Radio - I have put the audio file of the very good BBC version on MediaFire...
https://www.mediafire.com/folder/lckrf8paym1n9/Music_%26_Audio

Later Irish Studies Review was to morph into a standard academic journal...

There are a few other Irish Diaspora Studies bits and pieces still out there, which I might hunt down.  I have decided that, for the moment, I should put only Irish Diaspora material there, on the MediaFire site.  And, for the moment, I am happy enough with the level of visibility.  There is evidence that a number of teachers and courses have bookmarked my MediaFire files - we get sudden spurts of downloads at the beginning of academic terms.  So...  4000, and counting...

Patrick O'Sullivan
December 2014


PS
March 2015
On March 1 2015 the download counter at MediaFire clicked over 8000...
Now, 8000 and...  I think I will stop counting...
P.O'S.

PPS
April 2015
I might stop counting, but the download counter sticks to its task.  As the end of April 2015 approaches, it lists 10,005 downloads...

June 19 2015 11,000 downloads

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