<VV> Communique (this is Re to several posts)

Wed Feb 18 17:58:31 EST 2009

Having a choice doesn't save the club any money.  And as more and more opt for the online version (which is nice but a fast, simple pdf would be better) how cost effective will the printed version when you only need to print and send out 1200, or 800, or 400 of 'em?

Our local club offers online, or printed and if you take email/download version, you save $5 a year on membership.  But printing ours costs us nearly nothing, and the extra $5 someone pays for a mailed copy covers the postage, so it's no biggie.

The CORSA prints many thousands, at a printer, where the per unit cost goes up as the number printed goes down and at some point it won't be worth printing them to send to a few hundred people.  And if I were to opt for an amailed version over the printed, it better be a HUGE discount.  So, the clubs gets less and the cost to create the magazine goes up. At some point you'll have to say be a member with emailed version or download version for $25 a year, or be a member and get the printed version for $60 a year.  In 5 years that will be about the differential.

Tim in Bovey

--- On Wed, 2/18/09, Harry Jensen, Executive Secretary <corsa at corvair.org> wrote:

> From: Harry Jensen, Executive Secretary <corsa at corvair.org>
> Subject: Re: <VV> Communique (this is Re to several posts)
> To: airvair at earthlink.net
> Cc: "Tim Verthein" <minoxphotographer at yahoo.com>, virtualvairs at corvair.org
> Date: Wednesday, February 18, 2009, 4:50 PM
> Hi--
> 
> There doesn't have to be either an eCommunique or a
> printed one. We can 
> do both and have done so, for a number of months.
> 
> The printed Communique features slick paper and nice
> pictures; the 
> eCommunique has full color pictures. Although the
> eCommunique is in full 
> color, each page is only about 350 KB to 500 KB. It
> shouldn't be too 
> bad, even on a dial-up.
> 
> As far as I know, you'll always have a choice. The
> printed version might 
> cost a little more, but you'll have a choice.
> 
> --H
> 
> 
> 
> On 2/18/2009 4:05 PM, airvair at earthlink.net wrote:
> > Online Communique? Oh Gawd NO! A thousand times NO,
> NO, NO!!!
> >
> > I am on dial-up and just yesterday a friend sent me a
> post with three
> > pictures attached. It took an hour and twenty minutes
> to download. You
> > think I'm going to spend the hours (maybe days)
> downloading the CC off the
> > net? Are you mad?
> >
> > Besides, no printer I know of, or could afford, could
> print it out as nice
> > a copy as what arrives in the mail. Slick paper,
> beautiful pictures, all on
> > a full-sized folded, stapled magazine. Just TRY to
> duplicate THAT! Yea,
> > right. You can take your clunky "download of the
> net" idea and
> > you-know-what with it. If it ever came to being forced
> to get it off the
> > net, I just simply wouldn't. Even if I DID have
> the highest speed
> > connection possible.
> >
> > -Mark
> >
> >
> >> [Original Message]
> >> From: Tim
> Verthein<minoxphotographer at yahoo.com>
> >> Subject:<VV>  Communique (this is Re to
> several posts)
> >>
> >> To be honest, and really I can't believe
> I'm saying this -- the
> > Communique should be completely, 100% done as an
> online publication.  This
> > eliminates I'll bet over 90% of the cost.  It
> should be posted to the CORSA
> > site monthly, as a PDF download.  EVERYONE can read a
> PDF, the reader if
> > you need it is FREE, you can print it if you want, and
> you can adjust the
> > size to whatever you want.  This coming from a STRONG
> supporter and fan pf
> > printed magazines.  But it would save THOUSANDS
> YEARLY.  The information
> > would reach everyone quick, the ads would be more
> timely, publication
> > length would be basically unlimited, etc.  Fancy on
> line reading programs
> > and all that (like the last ones posted) and all
> pretty and cute, but won't
> > work with EVERY computer.  Even a HUGE PDF can be
> downloaded by someone on
> > dialup, even if it takes a while. It's time to
> bite the bullet and realize
> > that the WORLD is taking care of timely things with
> the internet and saving
> > on cost
> >>   while providing unlmited content. The youth of
> America, who we are
> > trying to bring on board don't want to pay for a
> cub members hip to get a
> > magazine. They live on their computers.  I know there
> are many who will
> > HATE this, and probably cancel their membership
> instantly, but if you lose
> > a few years worth of dues it will be more than made up
> by the savings in
> > production and distribution.  Fretting about
> bandwidth?  if that's an
> > issue, CORSA needs to find a decent deal on server
> space. my web site, and
> > that of my employer is hosted by a company that gives
> UNLIMMITED server
> > space, and HUGE amounts of transfer for $90 a YEAR. 
> At work we upload
> > easily half a gig a day, and sometimes up to 20 gigs a
> day are downloaded,
> > and we don't even make a BLIP on the bandwidth
> limit meter.  People used to
> > say "I don't want to darn telephone.  People
> 'll quit visitin' ifn they can
> > jes call up the neighbors and kin"  And we moved
> on, and we all have a
> > phone.  the computer
> >>   is that way now. It's time to stop fighting
> the trend and spending
> > thousands to cater to the few.
> >> Back issues can be scanned to pdf as images, not
> OCR, it's fast and a
> > common way to do it.  I've copies many a vintage
> tech manual, etc for some
> > piece of equipment for someone, saved the scans in pdf
> format, and e-mailed
> > 'em off in minimum amounts of time. Trouble is,
> everyone wants to start
> > getting all fancy with your databases, and searches,
> and excel crap, and
> > blah blah.  A good ol' PDF works everywhere, and
> will probably work for the
> > next hundred years.  The other formats are often
> computer dependent and get
> > updated about every 3 years and don't always stay
> backwards compatible
> > (especially if M$ is involved).
> >> Put the Communique on the site in a members only
> area, and make it
> > simple. let people generate their own user name and
> password, etc. Coupe
> > times a year make it available for free to anyone who
> visits the site and
> > leave it available that way, so visitors can download
> a somewhat recent
> > issue (last 6 months) and see what's up.
> >> I love the magazine. I look forward to getting it.
>  but even I will admit
> > it's passe' for a group that's trying to
> be current, topical, thrifty, and
> > appeal to today's modern world.
> >> tim in Bovey
> >>
> >> Leaving the soapbox now.
> >>
> >
> >
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> -- 
> |--------------------------------------------------------------
> | Harry Jensen  mailto:corsa at corvair.org
> | CORSA Executive Secretary
> |
> | Corvair Society of America (CORSA)
> | P.O. Box 607, Lemont, IL 60439, 630.257.6530  fax
> 630.257.5540
> | http://www.corvair.org
> |--------------------------------------------------------------