A full literature and patent account (about 100 references) is given on work describing the vinyl polymerization to homo-polynorbornene, The interest in vinyl homo-polynorbornene is driven by its dielectric and mechanical properties for the technical application as an interlevel dielectric in microelectronics applications. The norbornene/olefin copolymerization is covered to some extent for comparison. The metal catalysts are presented and important polymer product properties are emphasized.