Mike, you’re too kind (to me, anyway ;-)) My optimism, at least, is probably attributable to my inexperience of stuff like this – those that have been through the wringer a couple of times are probably sceptical for good reason. What worries me is Frankie: he’s just out of juvie, shouldn’t he be more wide-eyed and naive than I? Maybe I’m just a very slow learner (then again, so’s Thomas Pynchon).
I hope you do write about Europeana in due course. We all know what to expect here, and whether we agree or not, when it kicks off a really good discussion, as this has turned out to be, it’s to everyone’s benefit.