So there are a list of sci-fi conventions award nominees that don't use a computer? I'm having trouble visualizing what category they could be in.
Specific example: John Hertz, recent nominee for Best Fan Writer.
And you yourself are making the argument, "even though in practice they've dropped to nearly zero".
Nearly zero and zero are not the same thing.
But we're not even talking about nominees. We'retalking about people who most lilkey are traveling hundreds if not thousands of miles to go to a sci fi convention. Not a thriller/murder mystery or romance novel convention. A sci-fi (ok and fantasy sort of) convention.
1. There are hundreds of members of WSFS who are voting who aren't attending the convention. 2. I am talking about members of the organization who do not have e-mail addresses and do not use computers. You obviously are having difficulty comprehending that there are any living breathing literate human beings who are fans of SF/F who do not do this, but I know it's true because I'm married to one of them. My wife owns a computer but doesn't have e-mail and eschews web sites. She meant to nominate by paper ballot but forgot to fill it out in time. I had to make out her e-ballot for her. Had she not had me there to do it for her, she wouldn't have been able to nominate.
As for eliminating paper ballots my single reason is to reduce the amount of time needed to collate and count them. If that isn't a large factor then why the near two week delay between closing nominations and announcing finalists?
No, not really, especially as there aren't a lot of paper ballots. Most of the time is spent contacting nominees (not always as easy as you seem to assume it is) and discharging the requirements of WSFS Constitution Section 3.9:
Section 3.9: Notification and Acceptance. Worldcon Committees shall use reasonable efforts to notify the nominees, or in the case of deceased or incapacitated persons, their heirs, assigns, or legal guardians, in each category prior to the release of such information. Each nominee shall be asked at that time to either accept or decline the nomination....
Counting nomination ballots is much more difficult than counting final ballots, because you have to review all of the ballots and deal with variations in spelling and naming, and computers are very bad at that sort of thing. Humans can do it better, but it still takes time. I'd say two weeks is the bare minimum, actually, and only because good administrators are trying to get things done ahead of time when they can; however, as most of the votes come in during the last few days, there's only so much you can do.
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timeasmymeasure
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Date: 2012-03-22 01:46 am (UTC)Specific example: John Hertz, recent nominee for Best Fan Writer.
Nearly zero and zero are not the same thing.
1. There are hundreds of members of WSFS who are voting who aren't attending the convention.
2. I am talking about members of the organization who do not have e-mail addresses and do not use computers. You obviously are having difficulty comprehending that there are any living breathing literate human beings who are fans of SF/F who do not do this, but I know it's true because I'm married to one of them. My wife owns a computer but doesn't have e-mail and eschews web sites. She meant to nominate by paper ballot but forgot to fill it out in time. I had to make out her e-ballot for her. Had she not had me there to do it for her, she wouldn't have been able to nominate.
No, not really, especially as there aren't a lot of paper ballots. Most of the time is spent contacting nominees (not always as easy as you seem to assume it is) and discharging the requirements of WSFS Constitution Section 3.9:
Counting nomination ballots is much more difficult than counting final ballots, because you have to review all of the ballots and deal with variations in spelling and naming, and computers are very bad at that sort of thing. Humans can do it better, but it still takes time. I'd say two weeks is the bare minimum, actually, and only because good administrators are trying to get things done ahead of time when they can; however, as most of the votes come in during the last few days, there's only so much you can do.