Plugged In

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chatwindows
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Plugged In

Postby chatwindows » Mon Jan 19, 2009 3:02 pm

Now that the toys are back in the pram, perhaps some good may possibly be salvaged from an unfortunate lapse of good manners.
In my opinion, after such tantrums, which perhaps should not be aired in the heat of the moment, (E-Mails are notorious for this sort of thing) the protagonists very often come to respect each other more than before & quite often cement a much better relationship. (Not always, I admit!) However, the point I am coming to, is that no-one can deny that Kelvin is a superb editor & I think will be very hard to replace. I castigated him along with the others, but in hindsight & in view of his magnanamous apology, I withdraw my condemnation. His skills in publishing, along with his professional enthusiasm for our aims, is a rare combination. It appears that as Mary is prepared to let the matter drop, could we as a society not do the same? I don't know how Kelvin would feel, but I think it is worth the question. Could he be persuaded to return to his post? This super magazine under his leadership, was heading the right way to become a force on the country's news stands & I know it would then have started attracting advertisers. There is nowadays more room for such a publication than ever before. (Just try buying one next time you're in Smiths.) Once this happens, it largely becomes self funding & can start paying wages. There are already far more shoddy publications than ours making it. We only need to broaden it's horizons to appeal to enthusiasts outside of our club. If necessary a small sub commitee could be formed to help Kelvin, & dare I say it (an independant proof reader) well it had to be said didn't it? I recognise that whilst I may have the time, I do not have the skills needed for this most demanding job. However, I am happy to volunteer any help that the editor may want, including proof reading. He/she really needs a shopping list of needed skills, to which those who can, may offer their help. Another idea which may (or may not!) help, is a secretarys/editors page, which would not only give a regular connection, but also enable any differences to be sorted before going to print. Very often the treading upon people's toes, which is largely what this debacle was about, is just not realised by the offending parties. Often, easily sorted out by knowledge of such lapses of protocol. Something that didn't happen when all the staff were in one office, before computers!
Certainly, the letters page is an easy one to control, now we know about it, & in my opinion is important. Both from being edited, as well as being a mouthpiece for those who have information to impart. The Forum is the place for personal differences to be aired, where the adjudicator has the option of halting a thread. This way, the magazine does not fall into the trap of issue 5, & be an embarrasment to anyone. Perhaps this letter is not the time for a poll, but after digesting it, perhaps we should try it.
There, I've said my piece. I now reach for my tin hat.

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MB
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Postby MB » Thu Jan 22, 2009 9:03 am

I believe you are right. Kelvin was doing a good job in the magazine, and ultimately if it could end up being sold as a magazine through news-stands, so much the better.

However, I would like to make a slightly different proposal to yours, if I may?

I would suggest that if we went this route, the magazine would be best produced by an independent group working alongside the BVS rather than part of it.

The relationship between the magazine and the BVS would be a close one: the BVS would distribute copies of the magazine to all its members as one of the perks for membership. BVS members would also get a supplimentary newsletter that would be posted inside each copy of the magazine with club-specific news and information.

The magazine would also be sold through other outlets, and would include promotion to join the BVS, thereby reaching potential members who would otherwise never have come across the club.

The independent group would then have to have it's own leadership and team of people to produce the magazine, with a number of committed contributors who would commit to writing articles each month, an editor and deputy editor, proof readers, advertising sales people and so on. As the magazine started generating money, it could start paying people for their part time work.

I'm not sure there is the will, drive or focus within the BVS to make this happen, and the number of editors that Plugged In had during its short life suggests that the role was an impossible one to carry out within the BVS.
My new book is out: The 2011 Electric Car Guide is available from Amazon and all good bookshops.

chatwindows
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Postby chatwindows » Thu Jan 22, 2009 9:30 am

I believe that this is indeed a healthy thread to discuss in relation to the magazine. I am more sure than ever now, that there is a future for it. A supplement for club owners is a good idea, but messy to organise. A club chapter might be easier. It gives outsiders an opportunity to see how we are wired up. (sorry for the pun) I tried last night to find a magazine catering for the Electric Vehicle. 2 in America. 0 in England. With the almost daily mentions of "new green" powered cars etc in the media, our modest offering, with a bit of effort from all of us, which it surely deserves, could easily be the first UK mag of it's type. Someone will do it! Blaze publishing from Leamington who cater for shooting & other minority sports enthusiasts, may (I don't know of course) be persuaded to give it a go if there was sufficient commitment from the club to provide an ongoing interesting content. I'm retired now but I'd still be prepared to chuck a few quid at it to get the ball rolling, presentations to publishers etc. I'm sure I'm not on my own. We are in a transport revolution, no matter how long our "funny" cars have been running around. Circumstances have finally made the idea of a clean silent & above all cheap to run, electric car, a force to be reckoned with.
I would like Kelvin, to add his current thoughts on this matter. As I said in my first piece, I am prepared to volunteer as much help as my limited knowledge can provide. I just know I am not alone in this.
chatwindows.

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ChrisB
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Postby ChrisB » Thu Jan 22, 2009 10:30 pm

Interesting thread 8)

May I suggest you put your views to the Chairman (stand in) and committee at the next meeting, which I think is 7th March :wink:

ChrisB
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chatwindows
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Postby chatwindows » Fri Jan 23, 2009 10:10 am

Thanks Chris,
I'd like to do this. I know it is on record somewhere, but to save me looking, can you kindly give location & times for the meeting. I think I'd like to be there if it is constitutionally allowed.
If not, what is the form for putting forward a proposal/suggestion/idea.
chatwindows.

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timpootle
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Postby timpootle » Fri Jan 23, 2009 3:34 pm

http://www.batteryvehiclesociety.org.uk ... ess/?p=467

There will be a Committee Meeting on Saturday 7th March 2009.

It will be held at Frank Wyke’s house, in the Bosworth area.

Any member is welcome to attend to observe, by prior arrangement with the Secretary, Mary Perkins.

For more details or to attend, please contact Mary on 0800 083 2171.

For her full contact details click here: http://www.batteryvehiclesociety.org.uk ... age_id=384


You can send Mary proposals, too, if you can't make it in person. But Bosworth is probably as close to Lichfield as the committee are likely to get.
Tim Crumpton

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ChrisB
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Postby ChrisB » Sun Jan 25, 2009 12:18 pm

Thank you Tim for that 8)

ChrisB
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qdos
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Re: Plugged In.

Postby qdos » Sun Jan 25, 2009 11:18 pm

chatwindows wrote:I would like Kelvin, to add his current thoughts on this matter. As I said in my first piece, I am prepared to volunteer as much help as my limited knowledge can provide. I just know I am not alone in this.
chatwindows.


Thank you all for your comments regarding my efforts on Plugged In. Those of you who were at the AGM last year will remember that I stepped in basically to try to continue the good work that Nikki had put in after she had resigned from the post. At the meeting and in the pages of Plugged In I asked for a team of contributors to come together and whilst one or two folk said they would do something the reality of the matter is that there's very few people you can rely upon to provide material.

I've been busy of late getting on building the EVs I have been trying work on over the last year or so and I have to say that not having to deal with gathering up items for the magazine has given me much more time to get on and be much more productive. I like most everyone else here visiting this website am very much dedicated to trying to further the EV world. Whilst I am obviously keen to see the BVS continue to grow and succeed in it's aims I'm saddened to say that I'm not particularly inclined to spend the massive amounts of time I was spending dealing with the committee any more. There are some fine people on the committee and some with some really good common sense but frankly I don't honestly think it's truly representative of what the members really want and is out of touch. This is of course just my opinion but given this opinion I don't think that I can really be looked upon to do much in the line of the magazine of the BVS. Besides which I'm happily rather busy at the moment with the afore mentioned EV Projects. I would be inclined to do something exe BVS if there were some other like minded bods wanting to put together some articles but I'm not going to get all tied up with politicians again.

If the BVS is to move forward it needs to improve it's team building skills it's something which has been very poor and has been commented upon on many occasions not just by me. If you flick through the pages of the forums here you'll see numerous people commenting on how they have found the BVS a rather unfriendly Society, which is a shame as there are some fantastic people in it including some people I've winged about myself.

We all seem to have the same thoughts on the issues at hand it just remains to be seen as to weather it's possible to pull it off or if folk simply want to talk about it. I did try so now there's a superb opportunity for someone else to have a go, failing that it's back to the old review...............

chatwindows
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Postby chatwindows » Mon Jan 26, 2009 11:02 am

Kelvins comments are both constructive & I fear self explanatory. I both understand & respect his feelings. I would dearly love to poke my head over the parapet & volunteer for the post of editor, for I am sure that I have the right attitude, (at the moment!) but fear that I would not have the computer skills necessary. Could I be really naive & ask Kelvin to place on record, :roll: here on the forum just what is needed to successfully do this demanding task. At least then, we all know what to expect, as well as what is expected of the editor.
Who knows, we may get a commitee of editors.
chatwindows. :roll:

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qdos
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Re: Plugged In

Postby qdos » Mon Jan 26, 2009 12:31 pm

chatwindows wrote:Could I be really naive & ask Kelvin to place on record, :roll: here on the forum just what is needed to successfully do this demanding task. At least then, we all know what to expect, as well as what is expected of the editor.
Who knows, we may get a commitee of editors.
chatwindows. :roll:


LOL well that's pretty easy to answer really. Just some imagination, a bit of creative flair and the ability to ignore people moaning at you all the time because they 'don't like the font' or 'wanted to read something about the latest developments on perpetual motion', be appreciative of people's comments that point out all the typos even when they can't spell your name correctly, and of course be able to come up with plenty of content out of nowhere on a regular basis without infringing on copyright. Above all though you've got to be prepared to do a LOT of work for nothing at all other than the pleasure of being able to stand back and be proud of what you have achieved.

One thing though to bear in mind is that unless I'm somewhat mistaken there is already an editor churning out the Review. Though he's not spoken a word to me at all since the AGM despite my asking him to work together, so you'll have to find out yourself what goes there. If you seriously want to give it a go, you're very welcome to call me. I'm happy to chat to anyone.


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