pcplantdb

["John Schinnerer" <john@eco-living.net>]

Hi Chad,

> I don't mean to diss Toby.  I really respect his work and his ability
> to explain permaculture concepts so clearly.  I think it's this level
> of clarity that has generated such a focused interest in guilds.

I didn't think you meant to - and he has done a lot of work around guilds and
likely generated some of the "guild buzz."

More about why I am not hot for making a "guild DB" per se - guilds are a
co-creationary *process*, not a "thing."  So I think making them a "thing" in
a DB is a mistake, in fact a type one error.

On the other hand, providing information about the guilding process and as
much as possible of the plant information relevant and useful for that process
seems quite appropriate.

If at some future time a "virtual guild process" simulation can be created on
top of that, that might be cool.

OTOH (as I've said on the PC list) the living embodied knowledge passed from
human generation to generation is *much* cooler, and much more accessible to
the 90% of the human population that has neither computers nor internet
access.

So a good PC-relevant plant DB that supports the (re-)generation of that
embodied knowledge could be cool.  It's those of us with the most technology
culture that have also lost the most of the living embodied knowledge, so it
IMO it's appropriate for us to use that technology (while we still have it) to
support regeneration of the embodied knowledge.

> Exactly.  I have found PFAF and Eden to be very helpful in doing this
> already because I can look for plants that have the characteristics
> and micro-climate suitability to fit into a specific niche.

Righto, that's how I imagine using a PC plant DB.

> I realize I keep saying this, but I think people should consider Eden
> as starting point for future development.  I wrote it with that in
> mind, so the code is GPLed, clean, commented, and OO.  At least look
> at it and tell me what it needs to become a base for development.

I will as time allows...pretty darn busy right now but I expect I will
appreciate the work you've done, just don't know what-all that is yet!  :-)

cheers,
John S.



John Schinnerer - MA, Whole Systems Design
------------------------------------------
- Eco-Living -
Design & Technology Services
People - Place - Learning - Integration
john@eco-living.net
http://eco-living.net