In the late 70s and early 80s a network culture emerged that pre-dated information exchange via BBS/Fidonet/Internet (Arpanet) type networks. This was known as the "Mail Culture". Using the guerrilla tactics of information networking started by such underground movements as the radical underground of the American 30's, 50's and 60's and the Soviet Block 'Samisdat" culture, the "Mail Culture" used the postal systems of the world to tie together outposts of radical/fringe thought and art into a loosely affiliated info-network. (All of course paying homage to the "chapbook" and "Pamphlet" cultures that sparked so many revolutions, including the American and French)

It worked like this:

In the very early 80's I became aware of a anarchist art collective in the Madison Wisconsin area known as "Xexoxial Endarchy" which for all intents and purposes functioned as a jumping off point for "Mail Culture" activity. One could write to XE, include a SASE, and receive in return a catalog (Xeroxed of course!) of weird pamphlets, catalogs and audio tapes of "experimental" music/sound collages, from the fringe of society (and beyond in some cases). Also, a list of names, addresses, and requirements (send us one of your things, we'll send you one of ours, or send a SASE, etc.) which you would then add names of places/individuals that you had collected (as well your own)in the mix, make copies, and distribute in kind. I was putting out a xerox zine at the time called SNARF and used that as my coin to trade with. Over the course of a few years my collection of crackpot literature from this source grew to encompass 3 bookshelves. It is apparent from anyone who has been in contact with this culture that the first iterations of the Inunabula catalog as we know it today came from/was tailored for this underground movement. I put a xeroxed copy of the original color , in circulation in 1990/91 or so and watched several iterations of xerox of xerox of xerox- sans illustrations, plus new illustrations, appear from time to time in fringe science and crackpot literature catalogs, sometimes "for sale.It is still unclear who circulated the original color version and for what purpose.

Later, several compendium books appeared (late eighties, early nineties) that were commercially available such as:

The Incunabula Originals
Notes: Contains the Edge Detector version of the OH Brochure that is the origin of the "written by PLW" rumor, and on page 16 of the PDF, the illustration has a black and white reproduction of the actual cover of the brochure, bottom left of the page which you can see here or click here for the complete notes. (updated 06/25/01)

Browse the Online version here

Download the Zip archive of the PDF here (4,399KB) Best version for printing.

It's in PDF, so you'll need the Free Acrobat Reader from Adobe to view it.
Zip archives open with WinZip (Windows), Aladdin Expander (Mac), or UNZIP for UNIX.