Here are a few thoughts to add to the stew as this new bulletin board gets
started.
I'm a past editor of our Club's newsletter and spouse of the current editor
(Austin Healey Club of Oregon)(16 pages per month, B&W, standard 8.5"x11"
with about 2.5 pages of paid ads.) I also do the club's tech tips column
almost every month. I think Greg's idea about a tech tip column is a great
one. I scan the exchange newsletters we receive every month as a primary
source of ideas for my column, but I also do independent research and often
pass along tips I hear from other club members.
After doing this column for going on four years, I can testify that no one
(at least this no one) knows enough to come up with original ideas month
after month. I do try to "add value" to an idea or story whenever I can. I
believe this adds to the store of information available to the hobby, which
must be a good thing.
I believe in altruism, but also believe that the originator of an idea
deserves, at the very least, full credit for the information. As such I'm
very careful to give credit not only to the author but also to the
newsletter from which I take ideas and tips. I know that I am pleased to
see one of my pieces apear in another newsletter when it is accompanied by
credit. I also know that it angers me to see something I wrote appear
anonomously or attached to someone else's name.
Other info.
We write our newsletter with Word 6.0, save as Word 2.0 and use Pagemaker
5.0 to lay it out. I have a scanner but don't use it much for the
newsletter. Our printer prints offset and converts color prints (makes
PMTs) for us as needed, including shrinking or blowing them up as required.
We leave a blank space in the story and instruct him as to which pictures go
where. Display ads are pasted up each month (though we're looking seriously
at scanning them and using the digital file to place them onto the
document). We provide a pasted-up master to the printer and he returns the
finished, stapled newsletters about 4 days later. We then apply the mailing
labels, bundle for bulk mailing, and provide them to the Post Office. We
use a full ZIP + 4 whereever we can obtain it and this seems to speed up
delivery. ZIP + 4 is 95% available directly from any one of the ZIP CDs --
I use the American Business Information "9-digit ZIP Code Directory." For
the remaining codes I use the Post Office's ZIP Code information phone line.
They will only do 4 or 5 addresses at a time so a long list will take many
calls. Another alternative is to provide your local Bulk Mail office with
an appropriately formated data file of your mailing list and they'll (once
only) check it against their ZIP database and add the ZIP + 4 for you. Bulk
mail requires a minimum of 200 pieces, but it allows up to about 3 oz per
piece at a cost of 24.6 cents (local) and 26.6 cents (all the rest of US).
Remember to calculate your total mailing cost at First Class and compare it
with what 200 pieces at these prices would be. Mail yourself the extra
copies to make the 200 if that's cheaper (no foul). We do that for a couple
of months every year after the dues cut off since some members just can't
seem to get around to paying in time to meet the deadline.
I'm working on the text for a club Homepage, but I've not done much more
than take a 4 hour class on html (and that was several months ago) so it
remains to be seen whether I can get it done without a lot of advice and
help from others who are more experienced. It looks like a great
information and recruiting tool to me.
Doug Auburg
56 A-H 100M
65 A-H BJ8
At 01:39 PM 2/15/96 -0400, you wrote:
>On Thu, 15 Feb 1996 Kdoc111@aol.com wrote:
>
>> Just wondering, what software do other editors use? I've seen some done on
>> pagemaker very well, though I'm having good luck with word 6.
>>
>There is a word 6 templete available to create www homepages. Ever try
>converting your newsletter to html? Of course, this means you have to
>scan photos in (that's what we are able to do, as Bob Hamilton, our
>secretary/treasurer now has a scanner!)
>
>
>> does anyone use a scanner for photos? my printer scans all of my photos &
>> snapshots into his copier with good results, but black and white only because
>> of cost.
>
>An option here in canada is that Black's Photography will scan in 10
>photos for ~$15.00.
>
>>
>> perhaps we could establish a forum to exchange tech tips.
>
> That's one of the main benifits I would like to get out of this
>mailing list. At the moment, our Association (see below) only has a
>homepage and the occasional newsletter. We want to develop a regular
>newsletter, that would include tech tips, biographies, upcomming events
>of our and other associations/clubs, etc. Hopefully with everybody's
>input into this mailing list, and the newsletter exchange (the
>snail-mail newsletter editors list), we may be able to get a newsletter out!
>
>I would like to expand our tech tips section of the homepage too...
>
> ________ ___
> / ______/ | | Greg A.M.Johnson '72 & '66 MGB
> / \ ___ | | Biology Dept.
> \ \_\ \ /\ __| | Dalhousie University
> \______ / \________| Halifax, N.S., Canada
> \/
> * See the *NEW* British Automobile Touring Association of NS Home Page!*
>
> http://www.cfn.cs.dal.ca/Recreation/BATANS/index.html
>
>
>
>
|