[QCWA] QCWA Journal in PDF for international members

[Dave - VE3JX]

Greetings all,

Our many thanks to all who have contributed to this discussion.  What is the end result of it?  Well, many like the idea.  However, the question still remains:  Is it feasible?  To be quite honest, I do not have the answer to that one.

We are indebted to Tony Hirsch W8RSH for providing us with the results of what he determined a few years ago.  Mind you, it appeared his study was based on offering the Journal as an eZine alternative for all members, so there were other factors he no doubt considered beyond our aspirations.  Tony's conclusion was that QCWA could not afford it.  In his last message, Tony said: 

"You . . . and others are advocating what appears to you as a simple creation and transmission, apparently not considering the man-hours needed to do that, and the attendant costs for that labor, four times a year. If one of you guys, or a team of guys, want to take a Journal apart, recreate it in a laid-out, graphics-included .pdf and take the time to keystroke the email addresses of all those EU-computerized members, then get the proper authorization from the publications committee and just do it.   QCWA can not pay for any part of your effort at this time. . . . you fellers are, in fact, advocating the supplementing of the print Journal with the "eZine edition"....which costs money, and QCWA can not afford to do it. There is ONLY the cost and man-hours downside to the email idea. Fix that."

Tony's insight gives us pause to really sit down and examine all that is really involved in such an endeavour.  There are quite a few questions to be answered before one would undertake such a project.  Some of them are:

1.  Do our International Members want an eZine edition, and will it be read?

2.  How many DX members are computerized or have access to a PC?

3.  In what format is the QCWA Journal produced pre-press?  Can that format be easily converted to pdf?

4.  How do we deliver the finished product?  By email or download?

5.  Do we have sufficient reliable volunteers to do the job, i.e. initial setup plus timely processing & delivery, every quarter?

6.  Once established, what sort of revenue stream to QCWA can we expect members to pay for this option?

7.  Are there any side or spinoff benefits that could come from this, producing their own revenue?

Each of the above questions produces another set of sub-questions, each requiring a necessary answer.  Question 4, for example, can raise such questions as:

a.  For email delivery, what would be the size of the eZine attachment?  And, is that size smaller than the maximum allowed by most email ISPs?

b.  Would we use PDF or another compression technique for the product?  Would we break it into smaller segments?

c.  If download, can the QCWA website be used for such?  Does qth.net or another site have a cost-effective facility that could be used?

d.  If download, how do we secure the product, i.e. restrict it to only those for whom it is?

e.  How many issues do we allow on that siter at any one time?  One?  or ??

I am sure that you can probably think of several other questions to be addressed yourself.  Suffice it to say that implementing it involves a whole lot more work than talking about it.  Tony is absolutely correct about that!

As Tony said: "There is ONLY the cost and man-hours downside to the email idea. Fix that."

My question is:  Can we?

I am confident that we have the know-how out there to find out.  Perhaps, if you are knowledgeable about some of these things, that is, computer or electronic-publishing savvy, could you let us know what you think about this, in any specific area of the above questions?  Or even add to the questions that we have not thought about?

Just a comment on Q. #7:  If the QCWA Journal were to be available in PDF or other common format, we could possibly produce CD-ROM archives of the Journal, such as is produced by the ARRL with their QST, and OOTC with their SGT?  How much would members be willing to spend on such a product?  (Never mind the historical advantage of it.)

As well, a sample (i.e. older) issue could possibly be posted on our website for the ham-surfer population.  It would help, perhaps, in interesting prospective members who stop by oue website to join us, by seeing what we're all about.

The bottom line to all this is that it cannot result in any cost to QCWA!  Tony is the chair of the Finance Standing Committee and he has made it clear that "QCWA can not pay for any part of your effort at this time." 

Understanding that, is this project doable? 

Of course, the first two questions are probably the most important.  For the answers to them, we have to rely on our International brothers for their input.  Unfortunately, very few DX members are on this reflector, as Bob has pointed out.  (Actually, very few members, period, are on it, as Bob has also said.)

Cheers,

Dave Hayes VE3JX