「インターネット上のディケンズ」
(Dickens on the Internet)

松岡光治

 インターネットを利用した文学研究が陸続と紹介される中、猫も杓子もインターネットに走り、電子の網にかかって抜け出せなくなるようです。「猫に小判」とならないように、春から始めた私も試行錯誤しながら、ディケンズ研究に有益なものはないものかと模索しています。ディケンジアンの中にはコンピュータ歴の長い方や授業でC言語を教えておられる方もおられますが、これから始めてみようという方のために少し現状を報告してみます。使用するソフトはすべてフリーウェアで、Macintosh の場合です。

(A)電子テキスト (etext) を読み込んで保存する

   Mosaic や Netscape といった WWW 用のソフトや、Fetch という ファイル転送機能 (FTP) を持つソフトを使って、英米の図書館などへアクセスして取り込みます。以下、ディケンズの作品 (現在は Carol, Chimes, Cricket, HT, TTC, GE が利用でき、OT, OCS, BR, ED は許可が必要です) がある主なアドレスを列挙します。インターネットを始める時は WWW / FTP / Gopher / UseNet などから使うのが普通ですが、各種サーバの一覧については The Internet Yellow Page (NRP) という便利な本があって、日本語版 (ソフトバンク) もあります。
@ Project Gutenberg このホームページの下にある Japan / Yasuda U. (安田女子大学の P. T. Ervin 氏の作成) の圧縮されたテキストを ZipIt というソフトで解凍した方が、長編小説の場合は海外から読み込むよりも時間が節約できます。
A Alex <http://www.lib. ncsu.edu/stacks/alex-index.html>
( → On-Line Books Page)
B Voice of the Shuttle<http://humanitas.ucsb.edu/shuttle/english.html>
C Wonderland<http://www.wonderland.org/>
D Berkeley OCF Online Library <ftp.ocf.berkeley.edu>
E Online Book Initiative <ftp.std.com/> ( → obi)
* 電子テキストを持つサイトの一覧表として、 例えば Gopher Menu があります。
* OTA (Oxford Text Archive) には千四百以上のテキストがあり、電子メール (e-mail) で へ全カタログを請求すれば、すぐにファイルリストと利用の手引きが届きます。
* 次に挙げるアドレスはディケンズの検索ができる所です。
F Yahoo <http://www.yahoo.com/>
G WebCrawler <http://webcrawler.com/>
H Modern English Collection <http://etext.lib.virginia.edu/modeng.browse.html> ( → Non-UVa users)
I Veronic <gopher://veronica.uni-koeln.de:234/7>
* 面倒だと思う方には、ディケンズの全作品を収録した Macintosh 用の CD-ROM (The Complete Dickens [Bureau of Electronic Publishing Inc., USA; Microinfo Ltd., UK]) が七千円で売っています。

(B)電子テキストでコンコーダンスとインデックスを作成する

 WWW や FTP あるいは CD-ROM でテキストを保存すれば、KWIC (俗称 QUICK) コンコーダンスとインデックスが即座に (Carol なら二十秒、GE なら二分で) 完成します。長編小説の場合は、テキストの読み込みもコンコーダンスの作成もメモリの使用サイズを増やしてください。作成には Conc というソフトが必要ですが、anonymous FTP でダウンロードできます。最新の Conc 1.76 が必要な方には、その他のソフト (ZipIt / UnZip / YooEdit など) と一緒に電子メールに添付して送らせていただきます。

(C)メーリングリストによる電子会議に参加する

  これは世界中の研究者が情報または意見を交換するために電子メールの送受信で参加する電子会議室システムです。ディケンズに関しては UC Santa Barbara の Patrick McCarthy 氏が主宰する Charles Dickens Forum (会員四百数十名、日本人五名) があります。電子メールをメーリングリストのサーバ機に送信すると、そのメールが自動的にすべての会員に配布される仕組みで、会員は質疑応答・会議案内・論文請求・新刊情報・その他、ディケンズに関することなら何でも送信できます。宛先は <listserv@ucsbvm.ucsb.edu> で、Subject は空欄にして、本文に <SUB DICKNS-L Your Name> (E が抜けている点に注意) を入力して送信するだけで、すぐに申請受諾のメールが届きます。詳しくは UC Santa Cruz の John O. Jordan 氏が主宰するDickens Project (毎年八月の初旬に Dickens Universe という一週間の大会があります) のホームページ<http://hum.ucsc.edu/dickens/index.html>を御覧ください。隣のVICTORIA <listserv@ iubvm.ucs. indiana.edu> という会員千百五十名を超える十九世紀イギリス研究のリストは非常に盛況で、ディケンズも議題に上がりますが、連日数十通のメールが届くので臨機応変の情報処理が必要となります。

(D)電子ニュースを購読あるいは投稿する

   インターネットの掲示板にあたるネットワークニュースを読むために NewsWatcher という UseNet のリーダ用ソフトを起動します。現在四千二百以上のグループがあり、例えば <bit. listserv.literary> の欄にはポーツマス大学の Philip Trew 氏による来年度の「第九十回ディケンズフェロウシップ国際会議」の案内 <http://www.port.ac.uk/dickens/> があります。その他、パリンドローム (e.g. No mists reign at Tangier, St. Simon.) やイギリス社会の文化 <soc.culture. british> など種々雑多な記事があって、気晴らしをするには最適です。投稿の方は少し慣れてからするのが無難だと思います。

(E)書誌データベースに接続して文献の所在を確認する

  Telnet (遠隔地のホストコンピュータにリモートログインするためのソフト) を使って検索できる公開図書館の例を幾つか挙げます。
@ Cambridge <ipgate.cam.ac.uk> (login → uk.ac.cam.ul) or <cambl.ixi.ch>
A Oxford <library.ox.ac.uk>
B Harvard <hollis.harvard.edu>
C California <melvyl.ucop.edu>
D Tokyo <library.lib.u-tokyo.ac.jp>
E Tsukuba <anzu.cc.tsukuba.ac.jp>
F Waseda <wine.wul.waseda. ac.jp>

(F)電子メールを使って「手数料なしで」書籍を注文する

  無論 FAX でも可能です。VISA などのカードを使って購入する方法ですが、最初に電子メールで資料請求した方がいいでしょう。
@ Blackwell's (Oxford) <http://www.blackwell.co.uk/bookshops/>
 email <blackwells.extra@blackwell.co.uk>
 fax <001-44-01865-261355>
A Seminary Coop Bookstore (Chicago)  三十ドルの株の購入が必要です。
    email <books@semcoop.wwa.com>
  fax <001-1-312-752-8507>
* 日本国内でも (株) ダイイチがインターネット販売をやっていますが、三割の手数料が必要です。会員は五%オフで、五十ドル以上の申し込みについては送料無料となっています。
  Telnet <carp.dbs.daiichi.co.jp>
 email <assist@book.daiichi.co.jp>
 fax <082-240-3111>
 

 以上、簡単に述べましたが、まだまだインターネットには多くの利用価値があります。その他の方法やディケンズ関係の有益なサイトを御存じの方は、メール <j45870a@
nucc.cc.nagoya-u.ac.jp> か、電話 <052-789-4864> で御教示いただければ幸甚です。私の所属する大学 <http://www. nagoya-u.ac.jp> の言語文化部でも今秋よりワークステーションを立ち上げ、情報を発信することになりました。店を構えても商品の質が悪ければ何の価値もないことは言うまでもありません。結局は提供して恥ずかしくない論文や資料の作成が重要なのだと改めて深く自省する今日この頃です。


The Complete Dickens

現在これは在庫切れということです。パンフレットによりますと1993年から販売されたようですが、いろいろ尋ねた結果、持っている人がいなかったので、本当に販売されていたのかどうかさえ判然としません。御存じのようにアメリカでも、MacはWindowsに押されて、CD-ROM自体があまり作られなくなっているようです。
どうしても欲しい方には"Like the Dickens: The Complete Works"というWindows 版 (ISBN# 1-878805-26-6, Bereu of Electronic Publishing, Inc., 141 New Road, Parsippany, NJ 07054, (tel.) 201-808-2700) が売っています。私も持っていますが、必要な作品だけ別の所にあるWindowsで読み込み、電子メールに添付して送るという苦労を強いられています。内容は実に華々しいのですが、音楽のCD-ROMと同じ値段(3千円ちょっと)だけあって、評判はあまりよくありません。このCD-ROMに関してメーリングリストに投稿された記事を幾つか挙げますので参考にしてください。


CD's CD

"Like the Dickens: The Complete Works" (Windows)
ISBN # 1-878805-26-6, Bereu of Electronic Publishing, Inc., 141 New Road, Parsippany, NJ 07054, (tel.) 201-808-2700

Reviews from VICTORIA and DICKNS-L

Date: Tue, 21 Nov 95 13:55:00 EST
From: Frank Cook To: dicknsl@UCSBVM.UCSB.EDU
Subject: Dickens CD

Hello Fellow Dickens Readers,

I usually just listen on this list. I am just a lay Dickens reader. I would like to share my experience with a great piece of software. I just bought, for about $40, one CD on CD. It is called "Like the Dickens". It is truely wonderful! It contains all his works! It has a glossary in the form of hypertext, so you can click on a word and get its definition or background information. It has photographs, character sketches, and is written in large, easy to read type. Another feature I like is the way you can insert and annotate bookmarks. Maybe some of you will get lucky for Christmas!


I used this product and didn't like it at all. As one graduate student here put it when I demonstrated it to him, "This isn't anything like fun."
The cd would be great if it lived up to its promise, but I don't think it does.
Word searches are s-l-o-w and s-t-u-p-i-d: I was running the disk on a pentium machine and it would take a good 5 minutes to search for the word "law" in Pickwick Papers. And then the first hit was, of course "Mother-in-law." The next search for "law" would take another 5 minutes, only to land on "mother -in-law" two lines down the page.
The glossary is impossible: The definition returned for "mantle" was "glisten" even though the context implied that "mantle" is a noun found somewhere near a "fireplace." Similar nonsense was returned on about a third of the words I tried.
Just two examples of many problems I had. I wouldn't recommend it unless someone absolutely needed it for its search capability, and was willing to read a real book--a real long book, like a Dickens novel-- while she waited for the machine to grind around.
I should mention that The Dickens Project provided the Bureau of Electronic Publishing with public domain materials that they scanned in, and made a few introductions to Dickensians, but we had nothing to do with the quality or contents of the product.
These opinions are my own, but I am,
Linda Hooper
Dickens Project Coordinator


From: Patrick McCarthy
Subject: Regarding that CD on CD
To: Multiple recipients of list DICKNS-L

Despite Linda Hooper's severe criticism of the Dickens CD so much praised by Frank Cook, we have had the politest of requests from Peter Shillingsburg, Tom Willshire, and Eric Johnson on how and where to purchase the CD.
Lou Burnard wants to know, "if, that is, it's possible to extract the texts themselves from the software used to access them--without using the clunky interface provided. Some of us have strong views on how to make such texts really processable!"
Frank Cook! Where are you? Where did you get your CD? And how usable or transferable are its materials?


Date: Tue, 28 Nov 95 9:16:31 EST
From: Frank Cook To: DICKNSL@UCSBVM.UCSB.EDU
Subject: Re: Regarding that CD on CD

Patrick McCarthy

The Bureau of Electronic Publishing Inc. 141 New Road Parsippany, NJ 07054 sells the CD CD. There telephone number is 201-8082700, Ex 22
Extracts can be printed, but I was unsuccessful in attempts to transfer text.
When I first submitted "CD on CD" it was just after purchasing the CD at my local computer store, 'Micro Center'. I was so excited to have the entire collection of CD on such a convenient little piece of plastic. Now that I have used it a while, I must admit it does have some short comings, particularly the inane glossary. But, all in all, I still think the CD is a wonderfull joy, well worth much more than the $40 I paid!


Date: Tue, 28 Nov 1995 08:22:41 -0500
From: David Paroissien To: DICKNS-L@UCSBVM.UCSB.EDU
Subject: Re: CD on Disks

Patrick,

I suggest that people who want access to Dickens on disk are best directed to the floppies put out by Fred Levit. Almost all of the novels are available on disks of both sizes (3.5 or 5.25) designed to run on any IMB compatible computer.
For details: e-mail: fle426@nwu.edu
or Hall Design, 250 Maple Avenue, Wilmette IL 60091.
I reviewed his disk version of CC some time ago for Dickens Quarterly. He has a decent search and retrieval system. Altogether, an impressive project, I think.


Date: Tue, 28 Nov 1995 09:32:28 -0400 (EDT) From: LDESSNE@UOFT02.UTOLEDO.EDU
To: DICKNS-L@UCSBVM.UCSB.EDU
Subject: Re: Regarding that CD on CD

Most, perhaps all now, of Dickens's novels are available in electronic form, either free through gutenberg and others on the internet or at modest cost from Hall Design, fle426@nwu.edu for info. These texts are in ascii form, or readily converted to it. Often bold, and other effects, are indicated by _ * and the like. I use the WordCruncher programs to create indexes, and then to search them-- at lightening speed--. Unfortunately WordCruncher seems to have gone out of business, so the DOS program is not available for sale or support. It takes some effort to learn to prepare texts for indexing, several hours per novel if you want it indexed to the page level. And these texts are not made from state of the art bibliographically speaking editions. Even so, they are marvelously convenient, and even have some promise as research tools. I'd be happy to provide further details via email. Larry Dessner English Univeristy of Toledo (ohio) ldessne@uoft02.utoledo.edu


Date: Tue, 12 Mar 1996 15:13:02 -0500
From: Don Richard Cox
To: Charles Dickens Forum Subject: Re: CD C-D ROM, an Inquiry

Yes, I also e-mailed Ken about this and he graciously bought me a copy which arrived yesterday. In fact, I was going to write you about this because the disk credits Dickens World for its contribution, yet I have seen nothing on this list about the disk that apparently your group helped create. I tried it last night and was VERY PLEASED. I cannot say that I have mastered it, because I could only work with it for about 20 minutes, but this is what I found.

It installs simply and easily. No tricks, no problems, no stress. You simply type SETUP and you're off and running. It comes with musical introductions to the screens, and includes a set of character pictures with a voice narration. That is, for many, but not all, of the novels, there are short lists of characters--not necessarily the major characters in these novels. If you click on these you get a picture of the character and a printed passage from the novel describing this character; then, a proper British voice reads the description out loud to you. I did find the pictures of the characters strange because it does not always use the original drawings. Some of these character illustrations, in fact, seem to be drawn from sources outside Dickens and do not resemble the original characters at all. One I looked at--Snagsby, I think--simply appeared to be a photograph of a Victorian gentleman whose appearance matched the prose description. Except for these pictures of selected individuals, none of the original illustrations is included.

You can also enter a small number of characters, places, or topics and it will pull up a picture and description. For example, Uriah Heep is not listed among the four or five characters for which you can get a narrated portrait. But if you type Heep you get a picture of him and his mother and a descriptive passage--but no sound. I tried entering a number of topics that I thought might be on the disk but had no luck so I can't really say how many topics or places it may identify for you. There is a glossary of words that may be difficult for students and one can click on them for definitions--one I remember seeing is "cravat."

Of course the search capability is the central issue for most of us. Here I would rate this disk good but not perfect. I tested it by opening novels at random and finding unusual words or descriptions and then typing them in to see whether the program would find them. It works very well at this but only in a rudimentary way. For example, in Little Dorrit I found the expression "quarantine ground." I entered that and it found it, but it also found "quarantine" by itself. I suspect it also found "ground" by itself. I entered the term "familiar gate" which I found in one novel. It searched a long time--maybe 60 seconds--and came up with something like 158 examples, which may have been every gate in Dickens, familiar or not. I am not saying it cannot do a more sophisticated search, only that I didn't figure out how to do such a thing in the time I worked with it. If this is the extent of its search capability, I can live with this limitation for the price I paid. You can limit your search to a selected work, selected group, or search the complete works--which on this disk are 17 novels, 56 short stories, plus a number of non-fiction essays (I forget how many). When you find an example--say whale, which is a word I searched for--it identifies the book and chapter where this reference may be found and produces a list. You can click on each item in the list--say Dombey and Son, Ch. 4--and it will bring up the passage where the reference is found.

I can say that I am very pleased with the disk. I must admit that I glanced up at my Gadshill Edition--thirty-six volumes I think--and marveled that this disk contained the same complete works. On the disk someplace, and I tried to find it a second time but couldn't locate it, is a list of other disks that are available from this same company, which is located in New Jersey. The address of the company is of course on the disk but it's at home and I'm at work right now. Although the disk I got from Ken Cole was labeled "previously played," it came sealed in plastic and contained a product reply card. In short, if it was used it was certainly not used very much. Can other new disks be purchased from this company for the many Dickensians who didn't get one of these $9.99 specials? If Dickens World was a collaborator or consultant, as the disk certainly states, can someone there tell us what edition may have been used, or how the text was scanned, checked, etc.?

So there is probably more than you wanted to know about this disk. I would not call it a "great" CD-ROM package, but it is adequate. I think what we need to do is somehow put the company who makes this in touch with this list and possibly the Victoria list. I suspect there are many who would be very glad to have this.

Don Richard Cox, Professor and Associate Head Department of English, University of Tennessee Knoxville, TN 37996-0430
Ph: (423) 974-6930
FAX: (423) 974-6926
dcox@utk.edu

"The Dickens Page"


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