Because the amount of printed paper was not much, only ten sheets, so when cutting the paper, Lin finished it in one go. But he only bound one copy with his own hands and handed it to the great magician Kabanbai who came in. The remaining part was completed by ten apprentices who would be responsible for the printing work.
It was just a group of people who were all at their wits' end and in a hurry to complete this simple task. But even after they finished it, they couldn't believe that a book with dozens of pages was done like this, even though the appearance looked very inelegant, even crude.
After completing five volumes, Lin did not stop and controlled the printing press to print another five volumes. This time, the dean was also asked to see the operation of the machine, and to record the energy consumption of the shaping technique used to control the Manroland metal printing plate. The subsequent work is also done by apprentices.
But this time, no one took action. Because when someone was demonstrating just now, their minds were confused, and who could remember what the whole process was like.
Lin did not urge, nor did he show any look of contempt, he just looked at everyone's performance. Finally, a young apprentice stepped forward and fumbled with the paper cutting machine table. There are two designs of pressboards, one movable and one fixed.
What Lin used just now is a fixed pressing board, which is embedded in the body of the cutting table. When needed, lift it up and it will get stuck. The fixed pressing board is provided with several pieces, which are just long enough to cut the fully opened paper in half from large to small.
After a while, the young apprentice figured out some ideas. Pull out the furthest piece of cardboard, find an apprentice who is closer to you, and together we carefully put the newly baked products on the paper cutting machine. With one stroke of the knife, the pages of the book were cut out. At this time, other people came to help, but the group was still in a hurry.
After tinkering for a while, the second batch of five journals was finally produced according to the standards of the first batch of finished products. There are ten volumes in total, written by ten very unskilled people, even if they were done intermittently, it took less than an hour to complete. Speaking of which, it took a lot of time to assemble the printing machine this morning.
Everyone looked at the finished product and became very excited from being stunned at the beginning. It seems that as long as someone has a voice, he is ready to do his best and keep printing.
But the most important control panel operation, no one else except the magician himself knows how to do it. So everyone stared at someone with sharp eyes. Of course Lin knew what this look meant. It’s not that I’m dedicated to the great cause of mathematics, so I devote myself to it; it’s just that I see a new toy and can’t bear to let it go.
But Lin did not meet these people's requirements, because before that, there was another very important job.
He took all the ten volumes of journals, including the one in the hands of the dean, back into his hands. Everyone who was reading through it looked a little reluctant to give up. Lin said to everyone: "Don't rush to print the book. Before that, there is a very important job to do.──"
He distributed the ten journals in his hands to the ten apprentices brought to help by the great magician Kabamba,
"─As you have seen, printing books is just a labor job. It may seem new to you now, but you will get tired of it after a long time. And this is a job that anyone can do, and it does not necessarily require a magic apprentice to do it. . But in order for this book to be published, it is still necessary to draw on your talents. This is actually just a first draft, and you still need to proofread it carefully. Of course, I am not asking you to catch theoretical errors in mathematics, but to catch Such as spelling errors, grammatical errors, and errors where the meaning of the text is not clear and can easily be misunderstood. As for inconsistencies, find them if you can, and then correct them."
The matter of proofreading seems to be unfamiliar to people who are confused. I saw a group of people looking at me with suspicious eyes like "What are you talking about?" After all, before today, the completion of a book relied entirely on scribes. Even if an error is made during the copying process, it does not necessarily mean that other people will make the same mistake, unless everyone is copying the same original copy that made the mistake.
But that’s not how printing works.
Lin had to explain more: "Mathematics is a subject with correct answers. It would be a shame if there were some ridiculous errors in a book that mainly focuses on mathematics. So before it is officially published, It is necessary to make a first draft and have someone read the text to find out those superficial errors and correct them. This kind of proofreading work is crucial for printing, because once a mistake is made, the next few copies printed will be wrong. Can you understand the seriousness of this?"118
After listening to someone's explanation, everyone suddenly understood the importance of proofreading. The master version is wrong, just wrong. If something like this is released, it will only become a laughing stock. And as you can imagine, this first issue of the mathematics journal is definitely the focus of many people. Any small flaw inside can become the target of criticism.
Understanding this, the great magician Kabamba gave up the idea of taking back the journal he just held; although he also wanted to get a copy and proofread it together. And the apprentices who got it also understood that the things in their hands were still semi-finished products. To complete it requires the efforts of everyone.
Seeing that everyone was overjoyed and somewhat disinterested, Lin knew that the next step was to get down to business. "Of course I ask you to help. It won't be for free, but there will be a reward. Of course, this reward cannot be like what you used to do, and you can charge two to five kil (gold) for copying a book. Such a high price .”
Someone also once knew about the remuneration of scribes. Because that was the job that I yearned for the most when I first arrived in Lost Land. Not only is it safe, but it is also highly profitable. Just to do this job, in addition to ability, you also need some background. A certain person had neither at that time, so he had no choice but to seek out the uncivilized goblins to risk his life.
The reward of two to five gold coins includes the purchase of paper, ink and other items that can carry magic words, but even so, there is still a considerable profit. And this is only the price for copying general magic knowledge. For some high-level magic knowledge, such as strategic-level magic that is classified as forbidden spells, the amount of remuneration will be even higher. You should know that the average person does not need a single gold for living expenses in a month.
But obviously, the remuneration for printing cannot be dealt with accordingly. Because there is a huge difference between workload and work content. In the past, I helped to copy magic knowledge for associations or magicians. First, it was labor-intensive and time-consuming. Second, the paper and ink needed to be specially made, and I had to prepare it myself. After all, the material cost was included in the remuneration. But it's completely different now, so everyone's ears are listening to how this remuneration is going to be calculated.
"This first issue of the Mathematics Journal, I estimate that one thousand copies will be printed, and everyone will be responsible for it. As for the remuneration, each person is twenty kilo (gold). It is estimated that including the time for proofreading, it will take about five to seven days. , to be able to complete the entire production of one issue of the journal. If the overall operation process is proficient, it is estimated that the time can be shortened. "
A person's reward of twenty gold was calculated by someone. The basis of actuarial calculation includes the past experience of wallowing at the bottom of Xijia District, as well as the news found on the forum index. In the same amount of time, a fast scribe can earn between ten and thirty-five gold by copying magic knowledge using the previous method.
But this also includes the material costs that must be spent, which means that there will be about half, or even less than half, of the net profit, depending on how low the price you can obtain the source of materials. Even so, the income is still considerable at the level of Midi.
The reward of twenty gold is probably a little higher than the income of a scribe who spends the same time. And this is a net profit not counting material costs. Twenty gold is probably the basic monthly expenditure for a magic apprentice to learn magic. Including the consumables required for meditation rituals, or the cost of materials required for some exercises and research, and of course the consumption of purchasing magic stones.
Therefore, everyone feels that the remuneration offered by Lin is just okay. It is not worse than before, but it is not much more. For the sake of my teacher coming forward and asking for help, I can still help. As for the astronomical figure of one thousand copies, it has been ignored by everyone.
Because in Lin's original actuarial calculation of remuneration, he did not take into account the price of goods in the holy city of Estali, and how many tricks these experienced scribes can find in this job and how much profit they can squeeze out. By spending the same time and working harder, they can earn more than twenty gold.
In this part, one can only say, don’t compare special cases with general rules. In the field of statistics, using special cases to compare with the general rule means that as many people as possible will die. There is no comparison at all. But there are ways to arouse the enthusiasm of apprentices. If you use the prize money as bait to catch fish, no one will not take the bait.
So Lin smiled and said: "Although the basic remuneration is only twenty kil (gold), as long as you proofread the manuscript carefully enough and make this journal perfectly published without a single error, you will get additional bonuses. "
Seeing everyone's eyes shining brightly and their ears perked up. Someone then cleared his throat and said: "On a one-month basis, as long as no one discloses the errors found in the text before the next issue of the journal is published, everyone can receive the same remuneration as this issue. The amount is used as a bonus. In other words, the reward for the first issue is twenty kil (gold). As long as no one finds fault in anything other than mathematical theory before the second issue is published, you will continue to help in the next month even if you are not willing. , and you can also get a bonus of twenty kilo (gold)."
This represents the precision of the proofreading and is related to whether your remuneration can be doubled! The ten magic apprentices involved in this work almost jumped up and howled.
After Lin Guang briefly explained how to record errors when proofreading the manuscript, some people couldn't wait to open the first draft and check the text.
