Aviation World - Summer 2019 feedback

Bernard

The full histories have been sent to the webmaster for uploading - once that happens we can post a link here.

Steve M

Now that the full version of my COSMIC WIND article is available to all to accompany the truncated version in the Summer AvWorld, it is important that members should provide Feedback to the AvWorld Editor on the revised content policy.

Members at large will not be aware of the many hoops and hurdles that I have had to go through or jump simply to get the article published ! In summary, shortly after submitting it to Rod Simpson, I was somewhat taken aback to receive his email on 26th February, which included inter alia “I'm not quite sure how to put this, but it was not exactly what I had expected - and I think the latter part seems more of a research file than an article. ....... it is now the policy to post this very deep research on the website...... We would then tell readers that the fully detailed histories are on the website. I think this would result in a feature closer to the style we are establishing for Aviation World”

Having produced very detailed articles for many years (particularly individual UK-regd aircraft histories in ABN) I produced a very short paper for our Board of Trustees to consider on the principles of this approach which was tabled on 09th March. The Chairman kindly confirmed the outcome on the same day, saying “ This matter and your paper were fully discussed at the Trust Board Meeting earlier today.  There was a lengthy discussion which encompassed not only the content and structure of AvWorld but also the Board's policy on dissemination of information both to Members and the general public at large. That policy is that detailed data should increasingly be focussed and made available on the Air-Britain website and that articles in AvWorld should be complete in themselves, but also edited so as to appeal to the more general reader member”

Given Rod’s slight lack of confidence “I will attempt to use my computer expertise (!!!) to insert pictures into the pdf which I upload to the website. It should be possible - but don't hold your breath” I personally produced the pdf for the A-B webpages now as at www.ab-ix.co.uk/pdfs/the_cosmic_wind.pdf.

I am also repeating this message on AB-IX so that those not yet part of the Forum can also be aware of the publishing policy and can express their views to the AvWorld Editor for summary in the next AvWorld feedback. If I overlooked the mention of this publishing policy in the May Newsletter, I apologise.

It is not my intention that there should be any more debate here or on AB-IX, but I do think that it is important that ALL should be aware of the AvWorld/Webpages content policy, which will affect their contributions for future articles, of which I (and Rod) hope that there will be many !

I am a bit behind with my mails and have just read the above by Bernard Martin.

I must say I am rather concerned with the way Air-Britain is going. It just seems there is a complete mish-mash now of how Air-Britain is disseminating its information. Its becoming difficult where to look for the information.

1) A-B Monographs - this is self explanatory, although why you cannot copy from the accompanying CD's is beyond me, as you could scan the book if you were that desperate.

2) A-B Magazines
a) ABN : I must say this has improved over the last few years, especially in layout, but there is a marked Civil bias.
b) New Av World : This is NOT a replacement for Aeromilitaria or Archive. The magazine is a very good read but as Bernard says above is being aimed at the general reader. Just look at the pictures of of these 2
magazines in the Members Area to see what has been lost (Thank you to Robert Swan for the registers at least, and Terry Hancock for the series of accident lists, but these were not in Aeromil before.) Why we have so
many pages of photos of current aircraft in AV World I don't know. Surely these could be on ABpic.

3) Online : This is where the real mess starts,
ABpic : This has improved a lot since the it was re-vamped.
We have ab-ix and the forum, but there seems to an overlapping of the 2 developing. In fact there seems to be fewer post on ab-ix as the forum has taken off.
Web site : We have the Members area and Researchers corner, I wonder how many members and non-members look at these sites. We are told that so many things will be put on the website, but when ?. Will it be in my
lifetime. You have to look at so many different areas to try to find something and find its not there. When will Malcolm Fillmore's Tiger histories see the light of day. Geoffrey Negus scanned the full list of both Archive and
Aeromilitaria, the last I heard was they could be put on the website, again when ?

One reply will be we cannot find the volunteers, if that's the case could not A-B actually pay for some outside help, and also to try and find a replacement for Yahoo.

Well that's enough of me being a grouchy old sod (at least that's what my wife sometime says). I'm glad I'm a member of A-B, and wish I had remained so from when I first joined in 1958. Much of what A-B produces is very very good, but the digital side could do with some improvement.

Best wishes

John Taylor (02803)

Phil

Regarding the copying of CDs, it is of course open to the copyright holder (the originator and/or publisher) to declare the content to be public domain, and not subject to copyright.

Geoffrey Negus