In its earlier days, RILM production relied on manual processes that were quite different from today’s digital workflows. Contributors from around the world submitted records on color-coded paper forms, often in multiple languages. The forms were intentionally double-spaced, giving editors room to make extensive corrections and annotations. Because many submissions arrived from non-native English speakers, editors frequently rewrote abstracts to improve clarity while preserving the author’s meaning. Work was divided according to language expertise. Staff members handled languages they knew, while outside specialists reviewed others. This process often became an unexpected education, with editors gradually acquiring technical vocabulary in languages they had never formally studied. Once edited, the forms were sent to a keyboard operator who entered every record into RILM’s database from home.
The database itself lived on a mainframe computer housed in a separate facility on Manhattan’s West 59th Street. Staff accessed the system via dial-up modems (see first photo of this post) using WYLBUR, a versatile computing system for managing various text types, including computer programs, letters, and manuscripts, through typewriter terminals connected to a computer. It featured remote job entry and retrieval, along with text alignment and justification capabilities. While it may seem outdated today, WYLBUR was a revolutionary innovation at the time. Although mastering its commands posed a challenge for many, the system became user-friendly once learned. Meanwhile, another room in the RILM office housed thousands of paper copies of RILM Abstracts destined for distribution around the world. Each week, a staff member carefully sorted and organized the outgoing publications by hand–a reminder of how much invisible labor supported international scholarly communication before the internet.
The RILM office in 1994.
