Abstract

Anytime a new publishing system appears, new practices, competences and roles must be developed by the people involved in the production process. Today's publishing systems are built around the «write once, publish many» principle: the same data source can be output to multiple media, either paper-based or electronic. The author maintains that this fractioning/ reassembling process is an opportunity for the refreshing of the cultural heritage of a social group: once data are archived (written down, or recorded on an audiovisual medium), they are available for any subsequent usage. Beyond the evident benefits of such a process, the author highlights also the possible risks that lie behind.