Sometimes, we learn best about history from sources that are not, in their own way, trying to be or represent history. It's not always from the newspaper articles, the newscasts and the columns that we learn about a way of life, but from the cast-aside stuff: the mailings, the advertisements and the catalogs. Here, presented in the best possible way, are the attempts to sell ideas and dreams to the populace. Maybe some of the promises are unkeepable, and some of the claims are impossible. But through all of this, these little bits of side material tell another part about computers and history.

How are you choosing what to digitize?

Naturally, the general approach is to go for what's "interesting": bright shiny catalogs, neat ads, funny unintended gaffes in social or other realms that come through the photographs. Even this relatively limited outlook will yield hundreds of items over the next few years; we'll wing it after that.

What about copyrights?

These items are being scanned in for historical purposes, and to save what may be one-of-a-kind materials. They're meant to be used in non-commercial ways, as commercial ways are almost definitely a violation of copyright. Should someone request so, we'll remove items from public distribution.

We claim no ownership or rights over these items merely for having scanned them. We do not watermark and we do not brand or change these items to make it seem we "own" them. We do not. The only thing we own is a scanner.

Thanks for enjoying the collection. Feel free to mail jason@textfiles.com if you have any questions, comments or items you wish to donate.

- Jason Scott TEXTFILES.COM